NYC Votes! has created an interactive map to illustrate voter turnout in the seven Democratic primaries for U.S. Congress held in New York City on June 26. Maps are viewable in most browsers, except Internet Explorer 8 and lower.
When the statewide Republican primary election to nominate a candidate for U.S. Senate is included, fewer than 1 in 10 registered New York City voters eligible to vote in a primary actually cast a ballot (9.7 percent). The highest turnout occurred in Congressional Districts 6 and 13. Yet, even those highly publicized and competitive races only had turnout of 15.4 and 15.5 percent, respectively. The map also shows the total combined campaign spending by all candidates in each district, which partially demonstrates how competitive each race was. The low voter turnout may be attributed to the rescheduling of the primary to June from its traditional date in September. Another factor may have been the revision of Congressional districts following the decennial Census. Whatever the cause, the low voter turnout rate represents a challenge for everyone who cares about democracy in New York City.
The map was built using data from the New York State and New York City Boards of Elections and the Federal Election Commission.
The city has two more elections this year--the New York State Primary on Thursday, September 13 and the General Election on Tuesday, November 6. Polls are open from 6 AM to 9 PM. Sign up to receive voter reminders from NYC Votes! "Pledge to Vote" campaign.