Fact check: Was listing candidates twice on NYC ballot a scam?

Elon Musk, the proprietor of societal media level X, criticised the legitimacy of New York City’s election strategy arsenic voters prepared to caput to the polls connected Tuesday.

Musk shared a photograph of the city’s ballot connected predetermination day. “The New York City ballot signifier is simply a scam! No ID is required. Other mayoral candidates look twice. (Andrew) Cuomo’s sanction is past successful bottommost right,” wrote Musk, who supported Cuomo over Democratic frontrunner Zohran Mamdani and Republican campaigner Curtis Sliwa. Other X users made akin points successful different posts.

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New York does not necessitate voters to contiguous IDs astatine their polling spot connected predetermination day, beyond first-time voters who were incapable to contiguous their IDs astatine the clip they registered. For each different voters, canvass workers corroborate individuality by matching their signature to authoritative records. People are required to contiguous ID erstwhile they registry to vote.

As for Cuomo’s ballot placement, the erstwhile New York politician mislaid the Democratic superior and created his ain autarkic enactment to let him to tally successful the wide election. According to predetermination rules, that meant the placement for Cuomo and his caller enactment was further down the ballot than longer-established parties.

What astir candidates appearing twice? There is thing fishy astir that: It is portion of New York’s agelong contented of fusion voting, successful which aggregate parties tin nominate the aforesaid candidate.

Having a campaigner look connected the ballot doubly is “not a scam astatine all”, said Jerry H Goldfeder, elder counsel astatine the instrumentality steadfast Cozen O’Connor. “New York has had fusion voting for many, galore years.”

How does fusion voting work?

If a campaigner receives much than 1 enactment nomination, voters indispensable take not lone the campaigner they similar but besides the enactment they privation those votes to number for.

In the 2025 mayoral election, Mamdani and 1 of his opponents, Sliwa, secured nominations from 2 parties, truthful they are listed doubly connected the ballot.

Mamdani won nominations from the Democratic Party and the left-wing Working Families Party. On predetermination day, Mamdani said helium voted for himself connected the Working Families Party line.

Sliwa won the information of the Republican Party and a enactment helium created, called the Protect Animals Party. Sliwa has attracted announcement for having 16 cats successful his 320-square-foot workplace apartment, and helium has made carnal payment a cardinal run issue.

Any votes for a candidate, careless of the enactment enactment the ballot is formed under, number towards that candidate’s total. “Although candidates whitethorn look connected much than 1 party’s line, voters tin lone ballot for them once,” said Julia Sass Rubin, a Rutgers University nationalist argumentation professor.

So wherefore would voters enactment a salient campaigner connected a minor-party line?

They mightiness privation to nonstop a connection astir the value of that party’s positions. They besides mightiness privation to guarantee that the smaller enactment continues to triumph capable votes to unafraid a ballot spot successful aboriginal elections.

By allowing cross-party alliances, a fusion strategy allows smaller parties to beryllium much than conscionable a “wasted vote” oregon a self-defeating “spoiler”, said Dan Cantor, who cofounded the Working Families Party and present heads the Center for Ballot Freedom, which supports fusion voting.

“It allows voters the quality to ballot their values and nonstop a connection to the campaigner that helium oregon she should beryllium attentive to the insignificant party’s concerns,” Cantor said.

Fusion voting’s agelong history

Fusion voting dates to the 19th century, but lone New York and Connecticut let the signifier today.

Historically, cross-nominations were utilized to elevate issues, including the abolition of slavery and enhanced governmental practice into the mainstream, wrote 3 ineligible experts for the American Bar Association successful 2024.

In the adjacent 1960 statesmanlike election, New York’s 45 electoral votes were crucial. While Richard Nixon received much Republican votes than John F Kennedy received Democratic votes, “Kennedy’s 6 percent enactment connected the Liberal Party enactment delivered him the authorities and the White House,” the authors wrote. Franklin D Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan besides won New York by fusing with insignificant parties.

Tabatha Abu El-Haj, 1 of the authors of the American Bar Association paper, said determination is an irony successful Musk’s criticism. “Back erstwhile Elon Musk threw retired the conception of forming a third-party, galore commentators noted the lone mode that enactment could really power the absorption of the Republican Party would beryllium if it operated arsenic a fusion party.”

Our ruling

Musk wrote, “The New York City ballot signifier is simply a scam” due to the fact that “mayoral candidates look twice”.

Mamdani and Sliwa are connected the mayoral ballot doubly due to the fact that 2 abstracted parties made them their nominees. This is however fusion voting works, and however it has operated successful New York since the 19th century.

We complaint the connection False.

Jill Terreri Ramos contributed to this report.