Election Day 2022: Getting Out the Vote with the League of Women Voters of New York City

The League of Women Voters of the City of New York joined Village Preservation to discuss all that one needs to know about the 2022 General Election.

This webinar shared important information for any voter in our neighborhoods of Greenwich Village, the East Village, and NoHo to prepare to participate in the election. Below is a summary of the important points on voting from this presentation. Use it as your cheat sheet as you participate in the November 8th, 2022 General Election. You can view the entire presentation, from Diane Burrows of the League, below or on our YouTube page.

All You Need To Know To Vote

Diane shared the components of making a voting plan. It starts with registering to vote. For the 2022 General Election it is too late to register to vote in New York State. If you aren’t registered, now is a great time to get started so that you can vote in the next election. Remember, in New York State we have “closed primaries.” This means that in order to vote in a primary election, you must be registered to vote with the party holding the primary. So when you register, you will need to choose a party in order to vote in their primaries, which is likely the next election that you can participate in if you register today. Make note of future election deadlines if you are not registered right now.

Voting in the General Election: Are you Registered?

For the general election, you needn’t be registered with a particular party, but you must be registered to vote. You can easily check your registration status on the NYC Board of Elections website or you can call 1-866-868-3692.

Finding Your Polling Place

Once you know you are registered (and the address where you are registered), you need to find out your polling place! This is particularly important if you are voting on November 8th, 2022, because your election day polling place may be different from your early voting place. So just because you have been seeing people come out of one place in your neighborhood with “I voted” stickers the past few weeks does not mean that is where you will vote on November 8th.

For example, let’s look up the polling place for Village Preservation’s address. First, you go to NYC Board of Elections website. Enter the address where you are registered to vote.

That will take you to a webpage that lists your polling location as well as your district information and an opportunity to take a look at your ballot.

Make Your Voting Decisions

It is not too late to make an informed decision at the ballot box! There are so many tools to help you research your vote. You can start with the sample ballot on the same page as your polling place information.

If you are not familiar with particular race or candidate or are still undecided in some races, you have many options for information. You can begin with nonpartisan sites like the League of Women Voters’. Their Vote 411 site includes voter guides and even candidate debate videos. From there, you can check out your political party’s information or even candidate websites.

Ballot Propositions

In the 2022 General Election in New York City, there are four propositions that are a part of your ballot. These are proposed changes to our NYC charter and an authorization (or not) of the sale of state bonds. And each voter gets to weigh in! If you would like some input on your decision, you can check out the analysis of the League of Women Voters’, a non-partisan group, on the ballot proposals.

Now that you have the information you need, go out and vote! Remember, if you are in line to vote before polls close, you are allowed to vote.

Staying Civically Active

The webinar also contains important Civics 101 information as well as how to stay civically engage beyond the election. We’ll continue to share information with you all on how to remain active in the community post-election. For now, you have access to this wonderful check-list shared by Diane during the webinar. We’ve also included important links and websites where you can continue to exercise your rights and responsibilities as a New Yorker.

Think and Act Locally: A Check-List

• I am a registered voter
• I will make a voting action plan (What is on the ballot? Where is my poll site? What are important dates?)
• I will share voter registration information and election deadlines with friends and family
• I will learn who is my city councilperson is, and which is my community board
• I will write an email, call or schedule an appointment with an elected official
• I will join a community action group
• I will attend a public meeting or demonstration
• I will attend a community board meeting

Stay Active with Village Preservation

And you are in luck, because Village Preservation can help you check off multiple points on this list! Check out our advocacy page for ways you can get engaged with Village Preservation’s civic action efforts. Some ways you can get invovled includes:

Taking Action on an Advocacy Campaign: Choose a neighborhood or issue that is important to you. For example we make it really easy for you to contact Mayor Adams and the Landmarks Preservation Committee to urge them to landmark Julius’ Bar and move ahead on other much needed landmark designations.

Or get invovled in Village Preservation’s effort to seek landmark and zoning protections for the area South of Union Square.

You can even easily report a violation and be a part of our “Preservation Watch” program.

Resource Round-Up

The list below provides you easy access to trusted resources for all of your voting and civic engagement needs. This is a list of the resources shared by Diane and the League of Women Voters of the City of New York during the webinar. Use these resources as you plan your vote for the 2022 General Election on Tuesday, November 8th. Keep the list bookmarked to help you as you decide how you’d like to continue to engage civically after the election.