Nearly 80,000 Big Apple voters turned out to cast their ballots as early voting kicked off Saturday – a figure nearly five times higher than the early voter turnout seen in 2021, according to unofficial data.
The New York City Board of Elections reported a total of 79,409 early voter check-ins as the polls closed Saturday – a sharp jump from the 15,418 who showed up when early voting began four years ago.
The increase comes as a hotly contested race to replace Mayor Eric Adams pits former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, running as an Independent against Democratic Party nominee and socialist Zohran Mamdani and beret-wearing Republican Curtis Sliwa.
Officials said 24,046 ballots were cast in Manhattan, with 7,793 in the Bronx, 22,105 in Brooklyn, 19,045 in Queens, and 6,420 in State Island.
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That was much more than the 2021 first day numbers, which saw 4,563 voters in Manhattan, 2,079 voters in The Bronx, 3,751 voters in Brooklyn, 3,441 voters in Queens and 1,584 voters in Staten Island.
The boost was touted by longtime top Cuomo aide Melissa DeRosa who said on X: “If these numbers hold, we could see 1.9M person turnout.”
Mamdani now leading in the polls by double digits to win the job overseeing the city’s $115 billion budget and nearly 300,000-member workforce.
Adams, a centrist Democrat, suspended his sagging re-election campaign last month as fundraising lagged following a federal probe, even though he was cleared of corruption allegations.
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