NEW YORK (WCBS 880) – New York City is seeing its first-ever “ranked-choice endorsement” for mayor now that voters are able to choose up to five candidates.
It is not something you expect to see during a campaign: someone endorsing two candidates in the same race.
State Sen. Gustavo Rivera is endorsing Comptroller Scott Stringer first and non-profit executive Dianne Morales second in this year's mayoral race.
“I decided to do a ranked-choice endorsement,” Rivera said. “Both have shown, both in their personal and professional life, that they both understand recovery and transformation.”
Morales said ranked-choice voting changes the playing field for lesser known names like hers.
“We are leading by example, so that we can begin to demystify the process and begin the process of educating folks,” Morales said.
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Stringer said it allows for a civil discourse.
“You don’t only rank who you want, you also can rank other people who are close to your beliefs and your ideology,” Stringer said.
Another leading name in the mayor’s race, Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, remains highly critical of ranked-choice voting. He said the city hasn’t done nearly enough outreach on how it works.
“And if we can’t get it right, then it’s unfair and it disenfranchises voters,” Adams said.
A group of City Council members, many of them close to Adams, filed a lawsuit looking to pause rank-choice voting. A judge denied that request, but the ruling is being appealed.