When will we know the official NYC mayoral primary election winner?
New York City voters have cast their ballots in the primary election for a Democratic mayoral nominee, and many are wondering when we will know the official results of who won -- and how ranked choice voting will impact the timing.
Although the results have not yet been made official, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo called Queens Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani on Tuesday night to congratulate him, saying Mamdani won the primary.
"I called Assemblyman Mamdani to congratulate him on tonight's victory. I also thank my team, which did a great job during this campaign. I want to look at all the numbers as they come in and analyze the rank choice voting. I will then consult with my colleagues on what is the best path for me to help the City of New York, as I have already qualified to run for mayor on an independent line in November," Cuomo said.
Mamdani spoke to his supporters and claimed victory just after midnight Wednesday, saying, "Tonight, we made history."
"In the words of Nelson Mandela, 'It always seems impossible until it is done.' My friends, we have done it," he said. "I will be your Democratic nominee for the mayor of New York City."
CBS News currently estimates a total turnout of 1.1 million voters, with most voting in person Tuesday. That's more than a third of the registered Democrats in New York City, noticeably higher than in the 2021 mayoral primary.
Primary night results
Unofficial first choice results started coming in after polls closed at 9 p.m., but that's not the end of the story, considering ranked choice voting.
Those unofficial first choice results included those marked as first choice from early voting, Election Day, and valid mail-in ballots.
Since no candidate got over 50% of the vote, we move into ranked choice elimination rounds.
Under the system, the candidate who got the fewest first-round votes will be eliminated, and voters who ranked that candidate first on their ballots will have their second choice candidate counted.
That process will then repeat until one candidate exceeds 50% of the vote.
So when will we get a clear picture of the winner?
We should have a sense even before the official results are certified. Preliminary, non-certified results will come out a week after the election.
We can then expect weekly reports, as elimination rounds are conducted, until one candidate crosses 50%. The entire process could take up to several weeks. In the last mayoral primary -- the first citywide election with ranked choice voting -- the final results were certified nearly a month after the election.
As far as a presumed winner goes, if a candidate is approaching 50% of the vote, and the gap between that candidate's unofficial numbers and their nearest competitor is greater than the number of ballots still needing to be counted, then that person will almost certainly become the winner.
The final, certified results still won't come out until all ballots are counted, including early voting, mail-in, absentee, military, affidavit and emergency ballots.
"If there is not one candidate with 50% plus one of the vote, those successive rounds will eventually take more time," explained political expert J.C Polanco, adding, "It could take up to a month, depending on the turnout."
