More than 1 million voters in New York City don’t matter.
NYC has a million independent voters. They can’t vote in Primary Elections. It’s unfair. All voters should be included in our election process to make government work better for New Yorkers.
We don’t get the government we deserve in NYC
When governing, politicians care most about the people who get them (re)elected.
They make decisions that keep their voters happy.
This works when the majority of people vote. But they don’t. In fact an extremely small minority is voting.
This means a minority of voters is setting the agenda for the majority of New Yorkers on taxes, policing, housing, education, transportation and all the important issue that impact our daily lives.
“City Council Members represent about 165,000 people. But they win by getting as few as 4000 votes.”
Because…
The election system in New York City is broken.
New York City’s “Closed Primary” prohibits more than 1 million Independent and Third-Party voters from participating in primary elections.
By the time they can vote in the General Election, there’s really no point. The winner has already been chosen in the Primary Election.
In the General Election, voters feel like they have to choose from the lesser of two evils - one candidate from each party.
This makes our general elections non-competitive and leads to some of the worst voter turnout in the country.
“Only 23% of all voters voted for NYC Mayor in 2021. There were nearly 5 million registered voters, but only about 750,000 voted for Eric Adams.”
Open Primaries will ensure every voter matters
Our plan gives a voice to all voters and forces candidates to pay attention to more voters to win. It makes government work better for the majority.
“Our political system isn’t broken. It’s fixed”
— Katherine Gehl, Founder, Institute for Political Innovation
Join the Team
Think “Open Primaries” can’t be done in NYC?
NYC has been doing them for years.
They are called Special Elections.
Special Elections are conducted when an elected official leaves office before their term is expired.
If Mayor Eric Adams resigns before mid-March 2025, a Special Election will be held to replace him.
Guess what: The public, candidates, and elections officials, are familiar with this system and no one complains.
Cities and States with some form of Open Primary
Los Angeles
Chicago
Houston
Phoenix
Philadelphia
San Antonio
San Diego
Dallas
Austin
Washington D.C.
San Francisco
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Georgia
Hawaii
Illinois
Indiana
Louisiana
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
New Hampshire
New Jersey
Ohio
South Carolina
Tennessee
Texas
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin