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Explainer

How Ranked-Choice Voting Could Sway New York’s Mayoral Primary

New York City mayoral candidates Zohran Mamdani, left, and Andrew CuomoPhotographer: Photographer: Yuki Iwamura/AP Photo/Bloomberg, Michael Nagle/Bloomberg

Primary day in New York City’s mayoral contest has arrived, and there’s plenty of drama.

Incumbent mayor Eric Adams, facing a corruption scandal, opted out of the Democratic primary to run as an independent. Former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, one of the two top-polling candidates, is attempting a political comeback after resigning in 2021 amid multiple allegations of sexual harassment. The other leading candidate is Zohran Mamdani, a 33-year-old New York State Assembly member and democratic socialist promoting a platform of rent freezes, free buses and free child care.