With ranked-choice voting, NYC Democratic mayoral primary might take weeks to pick winner

Voters in the nation’s most populous city head to the polls Tuesday to choose a new mayor for the first time in eight years. But it may be quite some time before we know who won New York City’s Democratic mayoral primary election.

With 13 candidates on the ballot – including eight who are considered major contenders – and New York City this year using ranked-choice voting for the first time for a mayoral contest, it could be a couple of weeks into July before a winner is declared. Ranked-choice voting allows those casting ballots to rank as many as five candidates in order of preference when voting. If no candidate tops 50% – which is an extremely likely scenario considering the crowded field – the ranked-choice voting kicks in, with ensuing rounds eliminating those with the least amount of votes. The votes of those candidates eliminated are reallocated to the remaining candidates. The process continues until a candidate reaches 50% of the vote.