A guide to New York’s invented ballot lines this election

New York’s practice of fusion voting allows candidates to run for elected office on more than one party line – and to get creative in the process. Voters are most accustomed to seeing candidates run on the Democratic, Republican, Conservative and Working Families Party lines, but candidates can also run on lines of their own creation – ones that might better align with their platform, or simply aim to catch a voter’s curious eye. For your viewing pleasure, City & State has compiled a list of some of the unique party lines that you might see on your ballot this election.

Speak the Truth

Long-shot candidate Jose Vega is running against Democratic Rep. Ritchie Torres in the 15th Congressional District on this seemingly positive but pretty unspecific ballot line. He ran on the LaRouche Party line two years ago.

Taxpayer Rights

Business owner Anthony Constantino is running in the competitive 21st Congressional District race on the Republican Party line as well as this invented one. Though perhaps better known for his social media posts and MAGA alignment, Constantino’s additional ballot line party line takes more of a traditional GOP approach – standing up for the taxpayer.

Stop Mamdani & Block Mamdani

These southern Brooklyn Republican candidates aren’t mincing words. State Sen. Steve Chan and Assembly candidate John J. Ricottone are both running as GOP nominees as well as on a “Stop Mamdani” line, while Republican Alina Bonsell is running against state Sen. Liz Krueger on the deep-blue (but not all that pro-Mamdani) East Side of Manhattan on the “Block Mamdani” line. 

Mamdani chuckled when asked about the ballot lines this week. “They should have worked together to do one anti-me line,” he said. “Maybe they’ll get it next time.”

Voter Options

Who doesn’t like to have options while voting? Kimberly Wilder, who is running against Republican Assembly Member Jodi Giglio and Democratic challenger Michael Szika on Long Island, is campaigning on artificial intelligence regulation and data privacy, as well as renewable energy and other progressive measures.

No Kings

Perennial candidate and local agitator Jonathan Rinaldi is running against Democratic Assembly Member Andrew Hevesi in Queens after losing in the Democratic primary. He’s borrowing a pretty famous anti-Trump phrase for his party line, but it’s far from his first time running on an independent party line. Thomas Kenny, a former Conservative Party member, is running against Democratic Assembly Member Carrie Woerner in the Capital Region on the “No Kings” line, but he has been accused of attempted voter deception after changing his voter registration to the Working Families Party in February.

4 Our Immigrants

In that same Queens Assembly district, David Kemp is running on a line called “4 Our Immigrants,” which Ramses Frias, a Republican Assembly candidate running against Democratic Assembly Member Catalina Cruz, is also using.

Arts & Culture

It’s the Crowley dynasty versus Arts & Culture. Democratic Assembly nominee Patrick Martinez – the nephew of longtime former Rep. Joseph Crowley – faces Republican challenger Brandon Castro in Queens. Castro is also running on this artistic line, plus on the Conservative Party and Reform Party lines.

The Answer 

Is Allen Iverson running for the state Legislature? No, running on this vague yet intriguing line to replace Democratic Assembly Member Vivian Cook in Southeast Queens is Paul Nichols. Nathaniel Hezekiah III is the Democratic nominee and only other candidate in the race. What exactly is The Answer, you might ask? We’re just as eager to know.

FGT Antisemitism

Some candidates are fighting antisemitism but coming up a couple characters short. Southern Brooklyn Assembly candidate Joey Cohen-Saban is running on both this line and the Democratic Party line against Republican Assembly Member Michael Novakhov. The former resembles the “EndAntisemitism” party line that former Mayor Eric Adams wanted to run on in 2025. The district covers several southern Brooklyn neighborhoods, which have a large Jewish population.

Affordable & Safe

Southern Brooklyn and Staten Island Democrats Chris McCreight and state Sen. Jessica Scarcella-Spanton, respectively, are both appealing to widespread concerns over the affordability crisis and public safety. It seems that despite his controversies, Adams’ impact can’t fully be erased from electoral politics, as this ballot line also starkly resembles his 2025 “Safe and Affordable” party line, though the switched order may indicate a quiet attempt to distance themselves from the former mayor.

Mercedes Simmons Cares

What’s better than your own name? Mercedes Vazquez-Simmons is eschewing the vague platitudes and just telling voters she cares about them in her attempt to unseat Democratic Assembly Member Demond Meeks in Rochester.