New York’s local government primary elections will be held on June 24.
These primary elections decide which candidates appear on the November ballot. In this year’s local government elections, many mayors, town officials, and county legislators will be on the ballot. These elected leaders make decisions that affect more than 100,000 CSEA members’ jobs, but voter turnout is often low.
Every vote counts and even one vote can make a difference. Here are a few examples.
Union power at the polls
In Monroe County, member turnout made a big difference. After Democrats won the County Legislature in 2019, four members broke away and joined the Republicans, blocking the county executive’s worker friendly priorities. In 2021, Democrats challenged three of those breakaways and won all three races. Look at the turnout of CSEA members in these races.
Legislative District 22 – Mercedes Vasquez-Simmons: 14% of voters were CSEA.
Legislative District 28 – Ricky Frazier: 18.3% were CSEA.
Legislative District 29 – William Burgess: 19% were CSEA.
The fourth breakaway wasn’t challenged until 2023, when CSEA endorsed Rose Bonnick in Legislative District 27. With 25% of voters in that primary race being CSEA members or retirees, Bonnick won the race, leading to a Democratic majority in the county which helped advance a labor friendly agenda led by Monroe County Executive Adam Bello. Our union made the difference.
Successful outreach
In 2023, CSEA endorsed Kingston Mayor Steve Noble, who faced a tough primary opponent. Of the city’s 7,707 registered Democrats, just 1,083 turned out to vote. However, 15% of of them were CSEA members, even though our union members only made up just 2.2% of registered Democrats. Noble won, thanks in large part to member turnout driven by CSEA outreach. Our union’s activists volunteered to knock on doors, make phone calls and held worksite meetings to keep members informed of this important primary race. Their work won the day.
Why it matters
These are just a couple of great examples of CSEA voters being more informed and active than the general public. Our union members’ ability to show up and vote has a dramatic impact on elections and flexes our union power.
CSEA rarely endorses in primaries, but when our union does so, it’s strategic. While we may not endorse in every race, we urge ALL members to stay informed and engaged to their local elections. Our union’s power is an informed, active membership.
For a full list of 2025 endorsed candidates, visit cseany.org/vote.
