NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — Voters will have the opportunity to cast their ballots early in both New York City and, for the first time, in New Jersey this weekend.
In the five boroughs, over 100 early voting sites will open on Saturday, giving residents the option to cast their votes early in several key elections, including the New York City mayoral race.
Unlike in the primary election, this election will not use ranked choice voting, meaning voters will just pick one candidate per office.
WEB EXTRA: Find a polling site in New York City
New Yorkers can visit sites like the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Lincoln Center to cast their ballots, but roughly a quarter of early polling places are public schools – something state Sen. Liz Krueger is not pleased to see.
“We are too dependent on trying to use public schools for early voting,” she said.
Krueger added that taking over a school's auditorium for 11 days is too disruptive and during the pandemic, is too risky.
“There are lots and lots of buildings that could and should be participating,” she said.
Krueger has repeatedly called on the Board of Elections to try harder to find other sites to use, especially cultural institutions that might enjoy tax breaks.
WEB EXTRA: Find a polling site in New Jersey
Meanwhile, New Jersey voters will utilize early voting for the first time this year and Gov. Phil Murphy said he is hoping to see voter participation rise.
“Other states that have done this have seen participation go up dramatically,” he said.
Residents can go to any site within their county to cast a ballot in several key races, including the gubernatorial election, and there are several locations opening throughout the state.
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