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Following 14 consecutive days during which voters of the earl bird ilk cast their ballots at brick and mortar locations throughout NYC, this week’s Primary Election Day brought the heat to  June 24–literally (99 degrees in Central Park) and figuratively (Zohran Mamdani handed a blistering defeat to fellow mayoral candidate Andrew Cuomo, compelling him to concede). Elsewhere on the ballot: Good news, as expected, for Brad Hoylman-Sigal, the incumbent Erik Bottcher, and Mark Levine in their races for, respectively, Manhattan Borough President, City Council District 3, and Comptroller.

But that’s not what this piece is all about. As you’ll see directly below, the Primary Election Day reporting done by Chelsea Community News’ stellar summer intern, Tiara Brownie, was more concerned with the people who braved June 24’s sweltering heat to perform their civic duty.—Scott Stiffler

EXIT INTERVIEWS AND PHOTOS BY TIARA BROWNIE

ALL VOTERS WERE ASKED THE SAME THREE QUESTIONS:

—What candidates and/or issues motivated you to vote today?

—Why did you vote on today’s (June 24) Election Day, as opposed to Early Voting (June 14-22)? Have you ever participated in Early Voting?

—How do you feel about Ranked Choice Voting: Do you feel enough was done to educate voters about it prior to the polls opening? Did you choose to participate?

Early Voting| “I don’t trust Early Voting. I never participated. I feel like they take those slips [ballots] and probably throw them away if it’s not for the people who they want to win.”

Ranked Choice Voting | “I don’t think enough was done to educate voters about it prior to the poll openings because just now, the poll workers were asking people if they knew what ranked choice voting is, and a lot of people didn’t have a clue. I’d rather just vote the simple and traditional way.”

Michael Hall (age 56) at IS 70

Motivation | “Short and simple, I just basically want to see change for the economy when it comes to health care.”

Early Voting | “To be honest, Early Voting didn’t align with my schedule.”

Ranked Choice Voting |  “Honestly, it’s too complicated for me to understand. I feel like it also delays the results. I never participate, and I feel like enough wasn’t done to educate voters like me prior to the poll openings.”

Luis Herrea (age 59) at IS 70

Motivation | “I voted today because I would like to see a change when it comes to immigration and the migrant crisis.”

Early Voting | “I only voted today because I was dealing with health issues. I normally participate in Early Voting to get it out of the way. It’s one less thing I have to worry about doing.”

Ranked Choice Voting | “At my age, I don’t understand it. It’s confusing. The single-vote system is better.”

Zack Styskal (age 39) at Bayard Rustin High School

Motivation | “Because I have lived in the city for 17 years, and I’ve seen good times and weird times, and I’d like to try to vote for a better time… We’ve had a lot of corruption issues more recently with our current mayor, and I don’t value his policies, the way he’s been handling his job. And so, I’m coming out to make sure that I pick the one that I think will do the best job as we go.”

Early Voting | “I’ve been out of town, so I couldn’t participate in early voting.”

Ranked Choice Voting | “I think it’s confusing for people, and I don’t think it’s obvious or clear. And I think it’s also very hard to educate voters because I don’t think most people have time to pay a lot of attention to things like how to do ranked choice voting. It’s just not very natural or very clear. So, on one hand, I see the value in it, but I also don’t think it’s necessarily something that people will pick up easily, given how busy they are otherwise.”

Kevin Knee (age 28) at Bayard Rustin High School

Motivation | “I’m very specific on my political leanings, and I saw candidates that had a great chance to win, and, you know, it doesn’t really happen that often that that particular party has the fighting chance that we do.”

Early Voting | “My partner was in the hospital, so I didn’t have a chance this year to participate in early voting. I normally do participate.”

Ranked Choice Voting | “I don’t think enough was done to educate people about it, but I think it’s okay. I prefer it to a typical two-candidate system.”

Rosa (age 21) at Bayard Rustin High School

Motivation | “I really like the platform Zoran stands on with freezing the rent. I ride the bus a lot, and he wants to make them free–and that’s exciting. I also feel like he’s a little bit more of an advocate for Palestinian rights, which is important to me.”

Early Voting | “I honestly couldn’t find the time to vote early. I never really vote early.”

Ranked Choice Voting | “I believe in ranked choice voting. I feel like it’s a fairer way of voting. I just wish voters were educated more about the system prior to the polls opening.”

Rob Levi (age 64) at Bayard Rustin High School

Motivation |“The economy is in shambles right now. That is the issue that made me get up and vote.”

Early Voting | “I was actually out of town.”

Ranked Choice Voting | “I don’t like it. It’s not very much educational, it doesn’t help the voters. I think it’s confusing. I think people just can make one choice, and when they start to explain how it moves from column to column, if somebody doesn’t get the first choice and it goes into another one, it’s confusing overall.”

Sara Fantry (age 38) at PS 340

Motivation | “I’m a fifth generation New Yorker. All sides of my family have lived in this city forever. And the city is genuinely so unaffordable. We really need leadership that act on housing/rent cost.”

Early Voting | “It’s just more convenient for me to vote today. That’s how I normally vote.”

Ranked Choice Voting | “I think it’s helpful for fairness when it comes to giving us multiple choices.”

Marilyn Ontell (age 79) at PS 340

Motivation | “I voted every time for every election that I have ever been faced with. Even when I lived in Mexico or in some other country. It’s so many issues that motivated me, as an activist I would say economic issues and health care.”

Early Voting  | “I was away on vacation. Sometimes, I vote early.”

Ranked Choice Voting | “It’s complicated, I would never participate. I read in a New York Times article that a lot of people say it’s confusing and not helpful at all.”

Erica Arakovitc (age 41) at PS 340

Motivation | “I know this may sound horrible, but my husband pushed me to come out and vote today. I would love to see a change regarding excessive littering in NYC. As a New York native, issues like sanitation and street cleanliness are things I would like to see change for the better.”

Early Voting | “I normally go out and vote early with my husband, but I’ve been so busy getting our kids settled into summer camp. I’ve been doing a lot of running around in the city.”

Ranked Choice Voting | “It’s complicated, I listen to what my husband tells me mostly. He told me that when I go vote, don’t pay attention to ranked choice voting; it will only confuse. You know, I’ve been hearing a lot of people say that, so I’m guessing it isn’t explained to voters properly prior to the polls opening.”

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