Ken Wilson and Carla Drummond cast their ballots for Cuomo.
Photo by Shea Vance
The first weekend of early voting in the 2025 NYC mayoral general election saw more than 160,000 people cast their ballots over two days, according to the city’s Board of Elections.
The BOE reported on Sunday evening 164,190 voter check-ins across the five boroughs through the first two days of early voting that wrapped up at 5 p.m. on Oct. 26. Brooklyn and Manhattan dominated the turnout numbers, with Brooklyn having 49,432 check-ins and Manhattan slightly behind with 49,191.
Queens came in third with 38,791 check-ins, followed by the Bronx at 14,225 and Staten Island with 12,551.
The strong numbers continue a record turnout for early voting in a mayoral election. First-day participation in 2025 was more than quadruple that of 2021 (31,176 through the first two days), the last time New Yorkers elected a mayor.
With nine days to go until Election Day in New York City, voters continued to turn out in force Sunday on day two of early voting.
According to data from the NYC Board of Elections, the start of early voting marked a record turnout, with first-day participation more than quadrupling compared to early voting in 2021 — the last time New Yorkers voted for mayor. Manhattan saw about five times as many voters on Saturday as the borough saw on day one in 2021.
Many voters who spoke to amNewYork on Sunday in Morningside Heights and Harlem expressed support for frontrunner and Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani while others expressed strong support for independent candidate and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Support for Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa seemed thin on the ground.
In the Democratic primary, both Morningside Heights and Harlem swung for Mamdani, and the two neighborhoods have traditionally favored Democrats in general elections.
Sliwa, though not expected to find much support in Democratic areas like upper Manhattan, has ratcheted up support compared to the last time he ran in 2021 and is seeing support elsewhere in the city, polling consistently between 10% and 20% — Mamdani leads the field in most polls by double digits while Cuomo is coming in second.
One voter whom amNewYork spoke to on Saturday in the Lower East Side, also a Democratic stronghold, said they opted for Sliwa in the race after a lifetime of voting for Democrats.
At P.S. 175 in Harlem, Sara Serpa and Andre Matos cast their ballots for Mamdani.
“I think he has a vision, there’s hope in him, and he’s fighting for the right causes,” Serpa said. “First time we have a candidate that speaks well, elaborates thoughts, and again, has a vision for the city, which the other candidates don’t have.”
Serpa was particularly excited by Mamdani’s plans for “affordable housing, justice and social rights, and making the city affordable for everyone who lives here.”
Carla Drummond and Ken Wilson cast their ballots for Cuomo, citing his political experience compared to the other candidates.
“I just believe that he’s going to be able to give Trump the most pushback,” Wilson said. Drummond echoed the sentiment.
In the primary, Cuomo made opposition to President Donald Trump a cornerstone of his campaign, arguing that his experience working with the president during his days as governor — when Trump was serving his first term in office — make him the right choice for a city being increasingly targeted by the federal government.
Throughout the general election, Cuomo has compared his relationship to Trump to that of a “dysfunctional marriage.” Though Trump has not endorsed a candidate, he strongly opposes Mamdani.
Cori Harris voted for Democrats down the ballot — save for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. Though Harris cast her ballot for Mamdani, she said she was intrigued by Sliwa’s candidacy and would have considered voting for him if he were not a Republican.
Early voting remains open daily in New York City’s five boroughs until Nov. 2, two days before the general election on Nov. 4. In addition to casting their ballots for mayor, voters are considering various candidates for other elected offices and a menu of ballot propositions. Find your early voting site on the NYC Board of Elections website, findmypollsite.vote.nyc.
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