Citizens Union Announces Broad Candidate Support For Moving New York City Elections To Even-Numbered Years

87% of City Council Candidates Surveyed Support the Proposal Designed to Boost Voter Turnout, Along With 7 Out of 8 Mayoral Candidates and All Comptroller, Public Advocate, and Manhattan Borough President Candidates Surveyed by Citizens Union

New York, NY (June 10, 2025) — Citizens Union today announced that an overwhelming majority of candidates running in the 2025 municipal election indicated they support moving New York City’s municipal elections to even-numbered years. The Charter Revision Commission is considering placing a question on the ballot this November to move the city’s election calendar to align with federal and statewide elections.

87% of City Council candidates expressed support for the reform, including candidates and incumbents running in 26 Council Districts across the five boroughs. This figure combines Council candidates who responded to Citizens Union candidate questionnaires (36 out of 43) with sitting Council Members who have co-sponsored a resolution supporting even-year municipal elections.

Additionally, 7 out of 8 Mayoral candidates interviewed by the organization say they support the calendar change, as did all of the Comptroller, Public Advocate, and Manhattan Borough President candidates surveyed by Citizens Union. This strong showing of support from candidates across the political spectrum demonstrates that aligning city elections with higher-turnout federal and statewide contests is not a controversial idea—it’s a practical, popular, and urgently needed reform.

“Moving local elections to even-numbered years isn’t some radical idea supported by one political faction—it’s a common sense reform that enjoys broad support among the candidates who would be affected by it. In fact, this reform was embraced by nearly all the mayoral candidates we interviewed, and these days they don’t agree on much,” said Grace Rauh, Executive Director of Citizens Union. “Candidates across the political spectrum recognize what New Yorkers already know: we need more people voting in local elections, not fewer. The Charter Revision Commission should act now and give voters the chance to fix a broken system.”

Despite recent efforts to boost voter participation, turnout in municipal races continues to decline. Elections held in odd-numbered years are characterized by low public awareness, limited media coverage, and uneven participation—skewing the electorate toward older, whiter, and wealthier voters. By contrast, even-year elections consistently attract far greater turnout across all demographics, with presidential election years drawing more than three times as many voters as mayoral elections.

Moving city elections to even-numbered years would:

• Increase participation, particularly among young voters and voters of color
• Save tens of millions of dollars, according to the Independent Budget Office
• Ensure local decisions better reflect the will of all New Yorkers
• Enjoy strong public support, as demonstrated repeatedly in polling and voter referenda. Ballot measures to consolidate elections in Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Austin all passed with over 70% of the vote.

Legislative momentum for this change is building. In 2023, Governor Hochul signed legislation moving county and town elections outside of New York City to even-numbered years. A constitutional amendment to allow New York City to follow suit is under discussion in Albany and has already passed the State Senate.

Should the constitutional barrier be removed, the City Charter will need to be amended. The Charter Revision Commission has a clear role to play in making that possible.

Citizens Union urges the Commission to act. This is not a risky or radical idea—it’s a widely supported fix to a well-documented problem. The time to move is now.

You can read more about how this reform will improve voter turnout and strengthen local democracy in Citizens Union’s December 2022 report, Moving Municipal Elections to Even-Numbered Years.

For a full list of candidates who support this reform, see below:

Mayoral Candidates: Adrienne Adams, Michael Blake, Andrew Cuomo, Brad Lander, Zellnor Myrie, Jessica Ramos, Whitney Tilson

Zohran Mamdani did not submit a questionnaire, and Scott Stringer did not express support for the reform.

Public Advocate: Jumaane Williams, Jenifer Rajkumar

Comptroller: Mark Levine, Justin Brannan, Ismael Malave Perez

Manhattan Borough President: Brad Hoylman-Sigal, Keith Powers

City Council Candidates: Jess Coleman (CD1), Andrea Gordillo (CD2), Harvey Epstein (CD2), Sarah Batchu (CD2), Allie Ryan (CD2), Benjamin Wetzler (CD4), Faith Bondy (CD4), Rachel Storch (CD4), Vanessa Aronson (CD4), Virginia Maloney (CD4), Collin L. Thompson (CD5), Julie Menin (CD5), Gale Brewer* (CD6), Clarisa Alayeto (CD8), Elsie Encarnacion (CD8), Raymond Santana (CD8), Wilfredo Lopez (CD8), Rosa G. Diaz (CD8), Bryan Hodge Vasquez (CD14), Pierina Ana Sanchez (CD14), Antirson Ricardo Ortiz (CD17), Elvis Santana (CD17), Justin Edward Sanchez (CD17), Jasmine Uribe (CD17), Alexander J. Caruso (CD19), Sandra Ung* (CD20), Erycka Montoya (CD21), Sandro Navarro (CD21), Yanna M Henriquez (CD21), Tiffany Cabán* (CD22), Shekar Krishnan* (CD25), Natasha Williams* (CD27), Japneet Singh (CD28), Tyrell Hankerson (CD28), Dermot Smyth (CD30), Selvena N. Brooks Powers* (CD31), Mike Lopez (CD31), Crystal Hudson* (CD35), Sandy Nurse* (CD37), Alexa Aviles (CD38), Ling Ye (CD38), Maya Kornberg (CD39), Shahana Hanif (CD39), Darlene Mealy (CD41), Chris Banks* (CD 42), Susan Zhuang*, Farah N. Louis* (CD45)

*Incumbent Council Members running for re-election who have co-sponsored a resolution in support of even-year municipal elections.

For Citizens Union’s full tabulation of municipal candidates’ support for even-year elections, see below:

About Citizens Union

For more than a century, Citizens Union has been leading the fight for reform in New York. We are a non-partisan good government group that serves as a civic watchdog to combat corruption. We are New Yorkers from diverse backgrounds and political beliefs, united in our commitment to put the public interest ahead of all special interests. We work to ensure honest and accountable government, fair and open elections, and a civically engaged public. Principled and pragmatic, Citizens Union is an independent force for constructive reform, driving policy solutions to achieve responsible and responsive government in the City and State of New York.