TOMPKINS COUNTY, N.Y.—Election Day is here once again!
Unlike last year, when most eyes were trained intently on the presidential election, this year local elections are taking center stage. There are 14 Tompkins County Legislature seats on the ballot and each City of Ithaca Ward has a seat up for grabs, not to mention dozens of other races happening locally around the county at the smaller municipal levels, plus five ballot proposals for New York State.
Polls are open all over the county from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Nov. 2. Absentee ballots may be dropped off at polling locations throughout the day, and Nov. 2 is the deadline to postmark mail-in ballots, which must be received by Nov. 9.
The Tompkins County Board of Elections has a wealth of resources related to Election Day, including a map to find out which election district you are in (and which polling place you should go to, although this map may be easier to navigate).
Candidate Question and Answers
The Ithaca Voice‘s Q&A featuring each candidate for Ithaca Common Council addressing some of the most impactful issues locally.
Plus, the Ithaca Voice’s candidate questionnaire sent to each Tompkins County Legislature candidate, asking questions with a wider scope for each of the 14 district races.
Ballot Proposals
It’s a crowded year for statewide ballot proposals. A brief summary can be found below of each proposal.
- Ballot initiative 1 – Several amendments to the redistricting process that is going on at the state level currently, which would speed up the process in 2022, freeze the number of state senators at 63, change how the redistricted map is approved and counted, and more. Detailed information can be found at the Board of Elections link below.
- Ballot initiative 2 – This would install the “Right to Clean Air, Clean Water and a Healthful Environment” as a Constitutional right in New York State.
- Ballot initiative 3 – This proposal would eliminate the requirement that voters register to vote at least 10 days before elections in New York (thus making it possible that people can register to vote with less time in advance of elections).
- Ballot initiative 4 – This proposal would eliminate the need for a reason to request an absentee ballot for an election. Currently, voters may receive an absentee ballot only if they state that they will be out of their county of residence on Election Day, or that they are physically incapable of voting in-person at a polling place.
- Ballot initiative 5 – This proposal would expand the jurisdiction of New York City Civil Court from matters amounting to $25,000 or less to matters amounting to $50,000 or less.
More info on all of these can be found at the New York State Board of Elections site.
Letters of Support
See our Opinion section here to check out the letters of support we’ve received so far in this election cycle.
RESULTS
Results are usually not available until about 9 or 10 p.m. on Nov. 2. Additionally, those will be preliminary vote totals—with early voting and absentee ballots expected to remain popular options, it will be over a week before the final tallies are officially announced. So, the Voice will post the preliminary results as soon as they are available.