NYC Mayor’s Race LIVE UPDATES: Over 1.7 million votes cast in contest between Zohran Mamdani, Andrew Cuomo and Curtis Sliwa

On the ground: Midtown East

Voters in Midtown braved a chilly Tuesday morning, many clutching hot cups of coffee, after casting their ballots for the 111th mayor of NYC.

The Vanderbilt YMCA on East 47th Street was brimming with New Yorkers on Election Day, many stopping in to vote just as the doors opened before they rushed off to work or school.

Ben Bafumi left the polling site with a smile, explaining why he voted for Mamdani.

“His policies. He’s very progressive,” Bafumi said. “I’m happy to see a progressive candidate, especially in NYC. He’s very charismatic and his use of social media. His policies bring back the power to the people of New York.”

Julia was another New Yorker out bright and early, exercising her right to vote. She was there to support Mamdani.

“There’s a lot going on in the world, so at least we can do our part by voting,” she said.

But during an amNewYork interview with a Mamdani voter, a woman exited the polls and exclaimed, “It’ll be a disaster if he wins!”

The woman would not elaborate on who she supports in the election.

— Barbara Russo-Lennon

On the ground: East Village

At Village View Housing on East 4th Street in the East Village, poll workers reported a steady stream of voters since opening at 6 a.m. Tuesday, with lines forming before sunrise and little slowdown by mid-morning.

Poll workers said turnout for a nonpresidential race was unlike anything they had seen in years. “Line formed outside at 5:45 a.m.,… has not stopped since,” the poll coordinator said.

In the 2025 primary, this precinct was evenly split between Mamdani and Cuomo, with each receiving 136 votes. It was also an outlier in the last presidential election, when Trump received 34% of the vote, his highest share in the East Village.

Jean Mermelstein-Knox, 47, who has lived in the complex since 2008, said they voted for Mamdani, describing Village View as a community in transition, one where older residents tend to favor Cuomo and younger families lean left.

“I’m not surprised it was that close,” they said of the primary. “There are a lot of seniors. And a lot of them are conservative. They may not be Republicans, but they’re definitely much more socially conservative than people my age.”

Mermelstein-Knox, who resides there with their partner and two kids, said they supported Mamdani because “he’s young, he’s from New York, he’s part of local politics,” and because they see him as someone who can “stand up to the federal government.”

“My whole family is queer,” they said, noting that their family relies on Medicaid and SNAP benefits, and they see a candidate like Mamdani and someone who will look out for their family.

Katherine Kelly, a senior originally from Poland, voted for Cuomo, saying she feared “anything socialist” and preferred “experience” over what she saw as the risk of Mamdani’s politics.

“We had communists for 50 years. I don’t want that in this country, in this city,” she said, adding that she believes Cuomo will make a good mayor, “He’s not socialist — that’s a big one for me.”

Many other locals who spoke to amNewYork cited a desire for change and frustration with the city’s political establishment.

Clarissa, a voter in her 50s from Avenue C, said she supported Mamdani because he “reflects my views” and is “a fresh face” who would stand up to threats from President Trump.

John, a consistent voter in his 60s on 1st Avenue, said he wanted “somebody more for the people,” pointing to housing affordability and calling Cuomo “someone who had his chance.”

Nelson Maldonado, who lives across the street from Village View on East 4th Street, said he considered voting for Sliwa but ultimately chose Mamdani.

“I like Sliwa, he’s from New York,” Maldonado said. “He started the Guardian Angels. The guy is really smart. But I don’t think he has the experience to run a city this size. I don’t want to waste the vote.”

— Adam Daly

On the ground: Upper East Side

Meanwhile, on the Upper East Side, voters packed the gymnasium at P.S. 183.

Carlos Ospina had two reasons to celebrate on Election Day. He was not only making his voice heard by voting, it was the first time he had ever voted in an American election. Born in Colombia, he became a U.S. citizen only last year.

He voted for Cuomo, with the state of education at the top of his mind.

“Education is a big deal,” the married father said. “I am very socially driven, but I feel there are inequalities in the system that we have to deal with.”

He added that he understands, but does not agree, with many of Mamdani’s policies.

“His policies are more social, in a way, it’s more ‘Let’s take all the money gathered for education, and split it evenly,’” he said.

He added that he moved to the Upper East Side, in part, because of better access to schools.

“I think local elections matter more than national ones,” the Upper East Side resident said at the P.S. 183 voting site. “I think they affect people more directly.”

As a research scientist, she is concerned about federal funding, which is why she voted for Mamdani. Threats, imposed funding cuts, and departmental reductions this year have affected everything from healthcare and education to roads and public transportation around the country.

“The cuts to federal funding are really important to me,” she said. “Mamdani has been more vocal against Donald Trump, who’s one of the people sitting there cutting federal funding.”

She also said it is great to see a young person run for office. Mamdani is 34 years old.

“That part is also really exciting,” she said.

William Ford, who is currently staying at the Vanderbilt YMCA, did not vote this year and explained that the candidates are “all a joke.”

“We’re in big trouble,” he said. “One touches women and puts COVID seniors in nursing homes. One is a communist [referring to Mamdani, who is a socialist], the other one is like a, whatever, Guardian Angel.”

— Barbara Russo-Lennon

On the ground: Harlem

A poll worker at P.S. 154 noted that the stream of voters at the school has been “steady” all morning, and that the location also had an unusually high turnout during early voting. By around 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, the worker said, the site had seen about 600 voters.

Lynnard Williams, who has lived in Harlem for 45 years, voted for Cuomo at P.S. 154. Williams worries Mamdani is “making promises he can’t keep” and said that Cuomo is a safer bet for the city given his experience in office.

“My heart was torn. I liked Cuomo as a governor, I’m sorry what he did to ruin his reputation … but, I just feel as if I do know a little more about him than about Mamdani,” Williams said. “Whoever wins, I pray that they do the right thing, because this city is a melting pot, and it has everyone in it, and everyone deserves a right to have a good life and the quality of life.”

Williams initially supported Mamdani, but was concerned in the final weeks of the race about claims that the assemblyman did not support President Barack Obama and former Vice President Kamala Harris in her campaign for president.

Raul Perez-Hinojosa. said he cast his ballot for Mamdani. Perez-Hinojosa said he has been following Mamdani since his campaign for Assembly, and he is excited about the democratic socialist’s affordability agenda—and that the two are graduates of the same middle school.

“I feel like he’s just the world’s mayor,” Perez-Hinojosa said. “I do think that he is the progressive candidate, the young candidate that everybody wants to see, and I couldn’t be happier to vote for him, honestly.”

Erik Linton, also voting at P.S. 154 in Harlem, voted for Mamdani.

“I was impressed with him as a candidate,” Linton said. “I thought he was a very principled on his messaging, I like his messaging, and you know, even if he doesn’t accomplish anything that he’s trying to, he’s going to try, and he seems to be the best candidate.”

Christopher Allen, voting in Harlem, said casting his ballot for Mamdani was “a little bit of a difficult decision.”

“I, over these years, really wanted to defend the establishment. I’m a gay man, and I remember Cuomo,” Allen said. “I remember great things that Cuomo did as governor, mainly getting gay marriage legalized back in 2012. I remember that night; it was very special, so the dude was a special guy to me. I think he was great during the COVID pandemic.”

However, Allen said, the former governor’s “workplace misconduct” was a red line.

“For me, that’s sort of disqualifying,” Allen said.

Alexandra Dauler, who voted at PS 154, said she voted for Mamdani, although she aligns politically more with Cuomo. She said she voted for Mamdani “to annoy Trump.”

“This is a protest vote. I mean, do I think his weird little grocery stores are gonna work? No, I do not. But he said, ‘I’m Trump’s worst nightmare.’ That’s enough for me,” Dauler, who voted for Adams in 2021, said.

— Shea Vance

On the ground: Gramercy

At Cabrini Houses on East 19th Street in Manhattan’s Gramercy neighborhood, poll workers said they had seen lines since before 6 a.m., with the pre-work rush zigzagging around the vote center.

“There’s been a line all day,” the site coordinator said, adding that she had “never seen as much interest in a mayoral election.”

Mamdani carried most of the surrounding precincts in Gramercy during the June primary, but Cuomo carved out a strong base in this predominantly white and affluent area, where 42.2% of residents are homeowners, well above Manhattan’s 29.8% average.

At the Cabrini Houses during the primary, 39.5% of voters here backed Cuomo, compared with 26% for Mamdani.

Michelle, 43, said she had been “a staunch Cuomo supporter” and voted for him in the primary but changed her vote to Mamdani after what she described as Cuomo’s “Islamophobia and racism” in the last weeks of the campaign.

“Even as a female, I decided to overlook the sexual assault allegations,” she said. “But once there was Islamophobia and racism involved, I didn’t think that was a candidate I could support anymore. The final nail in the coffin was Trump endorsing Cuomo himself.” Cuomo rejected that endorsement Monday.

Surayya, 24, told amNewYork she voted for Cuomo, citing his experience.

“I’m very aware of the scandals attached to his name, but New York City has a lot of structural and systemic issues that require someone who has seen things from Albany’s perspective,” she said. “Sometimes it’s not necessarily you as a person, but your experience level and how well you understand these issues.”

She said she likes Mamdani, but does not see him having his “day in the sun” just yet.

Chris, 30, has lived in Gramercy for three years in a rent-stabilized apartment. He said he voted for Mamdani, mainly for his pledge to free the rent on the city’s stabilized units, but that “the choices [for mayor] suck,” he said.

“But to the extent that anybody is going to be able to do anything, I think the guy who is charismatic, who has some genuine care, and can build a coalition has probably the best shot,” Chris added.

Todd Young, 39, who arrived with his dog, Stevie Nicks, voted for Cuomo. “I think he did a decent job as governor, and the city’s not in a terrible place,” he said. “I don’t want to flip things upside down with Mamdani.”

Young, who works in financial services and has resided in the neighborhood for ten years, said he favored Cuomo’s focus on public safety. “Defunding the police is not a good idea,” he said. “Hiring more police is a good idea, which Cuomo was pushing for. A lot of Mamdani’s plans sound great on paper, but I don’t see them actually being successful in practice.”

— Adam Daly

On the ground: West Village 

At PS41 on West 11th Street, voters navigated lines guided by fifth graders running a bake sale fundraiser for their class, who acted as unofficial coordinators, directing residents to the correct entrances.

This West Village precinct was the other tied Lower Manhattan voting bloc in the June Democratic primary, with Andrew Cuomo and Zohran Mamdani each receiving 30.8% of first-preference votesIn the surrounding neighborhood, Mamdani performed strongest in the boarding section, while Cuomo held a slight majority along the western waterfront.

Tony, 83, a longtime resident between Fifth and Sixth Avenues, said he voted for Mamdani because of his progressive ideals.“I lean a lot towards progressive and very liberal,” Tony said.

“Not towards machine politics … the more people like that get in office, the better we are, even if they’re not experienced, they’ll learn,” he said, pointing to Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who was first elected to Congress in 2018 as a political novice.

Tony, who has lived in the West Village for 50 years, said he was encouraged by the high turnout among younger voters at the polling site. “Young people, that’s where it’s at. It’s gonna be your country.”

But for other older voters at PS41 on Tuesday afternoon, the progressive politics of Mamdani were a cause for concern.90-year-old Liz, who has lived in the area since 1964, said she had been undecided on her way to the polls but was persuaded by a Cuomo campaigner on the corner of 11th Street.

“I figured, okay, go with it, go with the person who has this experience,” she said, emphasizing the importance of experience in running a complex city. “I feel like we really need somebody who knows what they’re doing. New York is not an easy place to govern,” she said.

Likewise, longtime West Village residents Anne Marie and Charles, both in their 80s, expressed concerns about Mamdani’s policies.

Anne Marie, a former economist at the Federal Reserve, sees Mamdani’s vision for New York City, such as freezing the rent and city-run grocery stores, as “very destructive, not just to people in co-ops and condos, but also to mom-and-pop stores.”

As a Jewish New Yorker, she said she finds Mamdani’s stance on the Middle East “offensive.”

Charles added that public safety was another factor that played a role in their decision for Mayor, saying, “We need police to keep some sense of safety,” and that they see him as an “anti-police” candidate. Both said they voted for Cuomo in the primary as well and wanted a candidate to bring stability and experience to Gracie Mansion.

— Adam Daly