Mamdani’s five ballot proposals appear set to pass

New York City voters gave a confident “yes” to all five of the ballot measures put forward by Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s first Charter Revision Commission, with election night results favoring the slate of proposals intended to streamline government processes and help the city better plan for its financial future.

With roughly 88% of scanners reporting nearly an hour after polls closed, the first four proposals, which would cut some of the red tape associated with creating bike lanes, expanding outdoor dining, starting construction projects and hiring city contractors, held between 61% and 67% of the vote, according to unofficial results from the city Board of Elections. The fifth proposal, which would set contribution goals for the city’s rainy day fund, held at roughly 72% of the vote. 

The proposals were crafted by a 15-member panel he assembled last spring, which he dubbed the Commission on Government Efficiency, or COGE – a cheeky play on President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency. The group held a series of public meetings across the city, seeking feedback from residents on how they might amend the City Charter to make city government more effective. 

Voters’ likely approval of the proposals doesn’t exactly come as a surprise. Historically, most ballot proposals pass – even ones more controversial than these five, like the housing related proposals on last year’s ballot. While the City Council waged war with the Adams administration over those questions aimed at reshaping the land use process, the legislative body refrained from taking a collective position this time around. 

That doesn’t mean they garnered universal acclaim. Republicans were generally opposed, as was the New York Post’s Editorial Board. Some civic groups took issue with the rainy day fund proposal, arguing it didn’t go far enough to strengthen the city’s reserves. For the most part though, civic groups and Mamdani’s allies trumpeted all five of the proposals as measured, practical steps that would streamline city government.

The proposals amount to another victory for the 35-year-old democratic socialist mayor. Mamdani’s creation of the commission effectively slammed the door on the zombie-like charter revision commission formed by former Mayor Eric Adams on his final day in office. With the help of former first deputy mayor Randy Mastro, the group sought to put questions on the ballot that could make things harder for Mamdani. 

The mayor has danced around outwardly promoting the proposals, and appears to be heeding the city’s rules barring the use of governmental funds or resources to produce marketing material encouraging voters to vote a certain way. The social media ads and informational resources put out by the Mamdani administration describe the proposals, albeit with positive language, without telling New Yorkers to vote one way or another. Still, some good government groups want tighter guidance around electioneering. 

“People are walking right up to the line and not crossing it in terms of saying ‘vote yes, vote no,’ and we’ve seen that repeatedly,” said Rachael Fauss, senior policy adviser at Reinvent Albany. “(Mamdani’s ads are) clearly aimed to influence a voter to make a certain choice, and we think there needs to be better enforcement and rules on this.”

The Mamdani administration did not see their ad campaign for the ballot proposals as electioneering, but rather their duty as charged to them in the state Municipal Home Rule law.

“Per state law, the Commission is charged with providing public education and is leveraging the tools available to inform New Yorkers about the proposed ballot props in an effort to encourage them to make their voices heard," City Hall spokesperson Dora Pekec said in a statement. 

With reporting from Shenal Tissera.