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New York voters soon head to the polls and mailboxes to cast early ballots for mostly county and municipal races at stake in this off-year election.
Nine days of early voting begin Oct. 25 and end Nov. 2, two days before the Nov. 4 general election. With no Congress seats or state offices up for grabs this year, the races to be decided are largely for spots on county legislatures, town boards and city councils, along with some judgeships and three county executive faceoffs in Westchester, Rockland and Orange.
Early voting’s upcoming kickoff has also garnered renewed buzz recently as the high-profile New York City mayor’s race captured national attention, in part, due to the potential 2026 campaign impact of a Zohran Mamdani victory over Andrew Cuomo.
How to cast early ballots in New York elections
Voters may cast early ballots in person at designated sites or by mail by applying for one here: https://ballotapplication.elections.ny.gov/home/earlymail
They can check their registration status here: https://voterlookup.elections.ny.gov/
New voters must register by Oct. 25. They can do so in person at their county board of elections or online at https://elections.ny.gov/voter-registration-process.
What to know about Hudson Valley early voting
In-person voting hours vary by county. Here are the websites for election boards for seven Hudson Valley counties to find early-voting times and locations and candidate listings.
Westchester County: https://citizenparticipation.westchestergov.com
Rockland County: https://www.rocklandcountyny.gov/departments/board-of-elections
Putnam County: https://boe.putnamcountyny.gov/
Orange County: https://www.orangecountygov.com/783/Board-of-Elections
Dutchess County: https://elections.dutchessny.gov
Ulster County: https://elections.ulstercountyny.gov/
Sullivan County: https://www.sullivanny.gov/Departments/Elections
Other races to know about
The Westchester county executive race pits Democratic incumbent Ken Jenkins against Republican Christine Sculti, their second race this year after Jenkins’ blowout victory in February to fill the office George Latimer, a Democrat, vacated after he was elected to Congress. Jenkins is serving the last year of Latimer’s term and must now face off with Sculti for a full four-year term.
In Rockland, Republican Ed Day is seeking a fourth term as county executive with independent Michael Parietti as his challenger. And in neighboring Orange, Republican Steve Neuhaus is also running for a fourth term as county executive, facing off against Democrat Michael Sussman, a longtime civil rights attorney who ran for attorney general as a Green Party candidate in 2018.
Other notable races in the region include one to succeed White Plains Mayor Tom Roach, who’s stepping aside after 15 years to run for Westchester County clerk. Justin Brasch, a Democratic city councilman, is competing with Republican Lenny Lolis to lead the heavily Democratic city of 61,000.
Chris McKenna covers government and politics for The Journal News and USA Today Network. Reach him atcmckenna@gannett.com.