Mapping How Mamdani’s Ranked-Choice Strategy Beat Cuomo
Adams
Lander
Blake
Mamdani
Myrie
Stringer
Adams
Cuomo
Most popular first
choice for mayor
Second choice
Third choice
Fourth choice
Fifth choice
Adams
Lander
Mamdani
Adams
Cuomo
Most popular first
choice for mayor
Second choice
Third choice
Blake
Myrie
Stringer
Fourth choice
Fifth choice
Lander
Adams
Mamdani
Cuomo
Adams
Most popular first
choice for mayor
Second choice
Third choice
Blake
Myrie
Stringer
Fourth choice
Fifth choice
By Elena Shao , Saurabh Datar , Keith Collins and Nicholas Fandos
July 26, 2025
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The results certified this week from New York City’s mayoral primary election provide the clearest picture yet — down to each voter’s ranked-choice ballot — of how Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani pulled off a major upset over former Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo. Here’s what the ballots show.
Share of ballots that did not rank Cuomo, by neighborhood
25% 50
Queens
Brooklyn
Bronx
Manhattan
Staten Island
The New York Times
Opponents of Mr. Cuomo, who had resigned as governor in scandal, ran an unusual campaign urging voters to leave him off their ballots altogether. They called it DREAM, or Don’t Rank Evil Andrew for Mayor. It appears to have had success. Although Mr. Cuomo placed second overall in the race, 54 percent of voters did not put him on their ballots at all. These voters were concentrated in Manhattan and the parts of Brooklyn and Queens closest to it, like Williamsburg, Astoria and Brooklyn Heights.
Candidate Share% Number of ballots
Mamdani
59.6%
640,340
Lander
58.9%
632,911
Adams
54.0%
579,587
Cuomo
45.7%
490,400
Myrie
40.1%
430,611
The “don’t rank” campaign was so successful that Brad Lander and Adrienne Adams, two candidates who received far fewer first-choice votes than Mr. Cuomo, were ranked on more ballots overall than the former governor.
Share of second-choice votes
Lander
Adams
Myrie
Tilson
25% 50
Queens
Brooklyn
Bronx
Manhattan
Staten Island
Lander
Adams
Myrie
Share of first-choice votes
Mamdani
Cuomo
25% 50
Queens
Brooklyn
Bronx
Manhattan
Staten Island
The New York Times
Under the city’s ranked-choice voting system, voters were allowed to list up to five candidates in order of preference. Mr. Lander, the city comptroller, was the most common second choice on ballots throughout the city after he and Mr. Mamdani cross-endorsed each other.
The maps above suggest this strategy worked. Mr. Lander was an overwhelmingly popular second choice throughout the city, but he was an especially strong No. 2 in gentrifying neighborhoods where Mr. Mamdani won in Brooklyn and Queens, like Williamsburg, Bedford-Stuyvesant and Astoria.
Supporters of Mr. Cuomo most commonly ranked nobody as their second choice, followed by Ms. Adams, the City Council speaker. Voters were especially likely to rank Ms. Adams second in southeast Queens, her political home.
Share of ballots that only ranked Cuomo, by neighborhood
15% 30
Queens
Brooklyn
Bronx
Manhattan
Staten Island
The New York Times
The single most common ranked-choice ballot cast in the mayoral primary was for Mr. Cuomo alone. More than 176,000 Democrats, or 16 percent of voters, cast ballots that listed only Mr. Cuomo, about four times the number of people who cast ballots that listed only Mr. Mamdani. Some of these voters ranked Mr. Cuomo several times on their ballots.
Cuomo-only ballots were especially popular in the South Bronx, southern Brooklyn and southeastern Queens.
The most popular rankings by primary voters either selected only Cuomo or excluded him entirely.
Ballots
162,833
1.
Cuomo
2. Blank
3. Blank
4. Blank
5. Blank
Ballots
75,274
Mamdani
Lander
Adams
Myrie
Blake
Ballots
38,495
Mamdani
Blank
Blank
Blank
Blank
Ballots
18,663
Mamdani
Lander
Blank
Blank
Blank
Ballots
18,077
Mamdani
Lander
Adams
Myrie
Blank
The general election will not use ranked-choice ballots, so the candidate with the most votes wins.
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