NEW YORK—The runoff elections for NYC comptroller and the public advocate took place on Sept. 29. Although votes were slow throughout most of the city, several reports of possible illegalities emerged from polling stations in Chinatown, where a steady stream of voters flowed through the day.
A runoff election was scheduled between comptroller candidates David Yassky and John Liu; as well as between public advocate candidates Bill de Blasio and Mark Green. The winner of each will move on to face the republican candidates for the primary elections in November.
The polls closed at 9 p.m. and the votes were counted and announced not long after. Liu won the comptroller vote at 55.68 percent, with Yassky at 44.32 percent. De Blasio won the public advocate vote at 62.5 percent, with Mark Green at 37.5 percent.
At the polling station on Kissena Boulevard in Flushing, Queens, Jing Liu, 44, went to cast her vote at 10 a.m. After entering the double doors of the senior center where the polling station was set up, Ms. Liu asked for help as it was her first time voting.
“They pointed to a woman standing at the entrance of the auditorium,” Ms. Liu said.
The woman checked her residential code and guided her to table 23. “At that time, she said to me in Chinese, ‘You go [out] there, you tell them to come here to vote,’” Ms. Liu said.
Ms. Liu asked the woman if she meant calling in more Chinese voters so “more voices from Chinese community can be heard.”
According to Ms. Liu, the woman replied in Chinese, “Yes. All Chinese always help Chinese.”
After questioning what the woman’s comment meant, another Chinese person entered the room. According to Ms. Liu, “The one I was talking to, she asked another Chinese lady, who walked in, ‘Who you will vote for?’”
Ms. Liu said she reported the incident to the Board of Elections.
A poll watcher at the same polling station in Kissena Boulevard reported that a young Chinese woman entered the station saying she wanted to vote.
When asked if she was a democrat, “She said ‘No. I’m not a democrat. I never registered,’” said the poll watcher.
The woman was told she could not vote, since the runoff was for democratic candidates. The woman replied she was told she cold vote for John Liu there.
“After she mentioned she was told to come there for John Liu, they said, ‘Oh, why don’t you come in and we can check your address. We can check for you,’” said the poll watcher.
The woman was told to go to booth number 23. The two people manning the booth “showed her a list and said “Tell me your address.' Then they said, ‘Oh, here’s your address,’” according to the poll watcher, who added that they never asked the woman for any form of identification.
The poll watcher wrote down the name and address of the woman and reported it to the Board of Elections. “The strange thing is she said again and again and again she is not a democratic party member, but they found an address for her,” said the poll watcher.
Similar incidents took place throughout the day. By 2:00 p.m., more than 200 people had voted at the Public School 131 polling station in Chinatown alone, according to Michael Misko, a polling site coordinator.
Votes were much slower elsewhere. At the Public School 112 polling site in Astoria, Queens, a polling site worker pointed to the empty auditorium, laughed, and said, “Check it out.”
Another poll worker chimed in, “It was very, very, very slow.”
On the corner of 9th avenue and 43rd street in Manhattan, comptroller candidate David Yassky was doing some last minute campaigning. “The whole thing in this race is turnout,” he said, after shaking hands with a passerby. “We just need everyday people in New York to vote.”
“I think it’s a toss up at this point. Hard work can make the difference—we’re going to keep working until the end,” Yassky said.
A runoff election was scheduled between comptroller candidates David Yassky and John Liu; as well as between public advocate candidates Bill de Blasio and Mark Green. The winner of each will move on to face the republican candidates for the primary elections in November.
The polls closed at 9 p.m. and the votes were counted and announced not long after. Liu won the comptroller vote at 55.68 percent, with Yassky at 44.32 percent. De Blasio won the public advocate vote at 62.5 percent, with Mark Green at 37.5 percent.
At the polling station on Kissena Boulevard in Flushing, Queens, Jing Liu, 44, went to cast her vote at 10 a.m. After entering the double doors of the senior center where the polling station was set up, Ms. Liu asked for help as it was her first time voting.
“They pointed to a woman standing at the entrance of the auditorium,” Ms. Liu said.
The woman checked her residential code and guided her to table 23. “At that time, she said to me in Chinese, ‘You go [out] there, you tell them to come here to vote,’” Ms. Liu said.
Ms. Liu asked the woman if she meant calling in more Chinese voters so “more voices from Chinese community can be heard.”
According to Ms. Liu, the woman replied in Chinese, “Yes. All Chinese always help Chinese.”
After questioning what the woman’s comment meant, another Chinese person entered the room. According to Ms. Liu, “The one I was talking to, she asked another Chinese lady, who walked in, ‘Who you will vote for?’”
Ms. Liu said she reported the incident to the Board of Elections.
A poll watcher at the same polling station in Kissena Boulevard reported that a young Chinese woman entered the station saying she wanted to vote.
When asked if she was a democrat, “She said ‘No. I’m not a democrat. I never registered,’” said the poll watcher.
The woman was told she could not vote, since the runoff was for democratic candidates. The woman replied she was told she cold vote for John Liu there.
“After she mentioned she was told to come there for John Liu, they said, ‘Oh, why don’t you come in and we can check your address. We can check for you,’” said the poll watcher.
The woman was told to go to booth number 23. The two people manning the booth “showed her a list and said “Tell me your address.' Then they said, ‘Oh, here’s your address,’” according to the poll watcher, who added that they never asked the woman for any form of identification.
The poll watcher wrote down the name and address of the woman and reported it to the Board of Elections. “The strange thing is she said again and again and again she is not a democratic party member, but they found an address for her,” said the poll watcher.
Similar incidents took place throughout the day. By 2:00 p.m., more than 200 people had voted at the Public School 131 polling station in Chinatown alone, according to Michael Misko, a polling site coordinator.
Votes were much slower elsewhere. At the Public School 112 polling site in Astoria, Queens, a polling site worker pointed to the empty auditorium, laughed, and said, “Check it out.”
Another poll worker chimed in, “It was very, very, very slow.”
On the corner of 9th avenue and 43rd street in Manhattan, comptroller candidate David Yassky was doing some last minute campaigning. “The whole thing in this race is turnout,” he said, after shaking hands with a passerby. “We just need everyday people in New York to vote.”
“I think it’s a toss up at this point. Hard work can make the difference—we’re going to keep working until the end,” Yassky said.
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