Welcome to the Citizens Union 2023 General Voters Directory!
The 2023 General Election ballot includes races for the New York City Council, Bronx and Queens district attorneys, judicial positions, and two ballot questions to amend the state constitution. Because City Council districts were redrawn last year following the decennial census, all council members are up for reelection for a shortened, two-year term. The Mayor, City Comptroller, Public Advocate, the five borough presidents, and the Manhattan and Brooklyn district attorneys are not up for reelection this year. To help our supportive Citizens Union members prepare to vote, Citizens Union has been publishing an annual Voters Directory for over a century.
Citizens Union evaluated candidates in four contested races to determine who strongly supports our issues, can advance a reform agenda, and can best fulfill the obligations of the position. Here are detailed recommendations for voters on how to vote.
To read the full Voters Directory, click here.
To see our past preferences and endorsement decisions, click here.
Candidate Evaluations
Council District 23 – Linda Lee (D) endorsed over Bernard Chow (R, C, MF, CS)
Queens: Bayside Hills, Bellerose, Douglaston, Floral Park, Fresh Meadows, Glen Oaks, Hollis, Hollis Hills, Holliswood, Little Neck, New Hyde Park, Oakland Gardens, Queens Village.
Council District 37 – Sandy Nurse (D, WF) endorsed over Isaiah Vega (R, C, MF)
Brooklyn: Cypress Hills, Bushwick, City Line, Ocean Hill, Brownsville, East New York.
Council District 43 – Susan Zhuang (D) endorsed over Ying Tan (R) and Vito LaBella (R)
Brooklyn: Bensonhurst, New Utrecht, Dyker Heights, Sunset Park.
Council District 47 – Justin Brannan (D) endorsed over Ari Kagan (R, C, P)
Brooklyn: Bay Ridge, Coney Island and parts of Bath.
The following candidates were preferred by Citizens Union in the Primary and are on the ballot in the general election:
City Council District 26 – Julie Won
City Council District 29 – Lynn Schulman
Positions on New York State Ballot Proposals
PROPOSAL NUMBER 1: Removal of Small City School Districts From Special Constitutional Debt Limitation – Citizens Union HAS NOT EVALUATED this proposal.
PROPOSAL NUMBER 2: Extending sewage project debt exclusion from debt limit – Citizens Union HAS NOT EVALUATED this proposal.
Acknowledgments
This Voters Directory would not be possible without the hard work of members of the Citizens Union Board, Local Candidates Committee (LCC), staff and interns. 30 volunteer LCC members and staff members formed nonpartisan interview teams and evaluated 7 candidates in 4 races.
We thank them for contributing their time, energy, and expertise to interviewing and evaluating candidates, especially during this challenging moment. We thank you for your support, and hope you enjoy the latest edition of the Voters Directory.