Happy new year and welcome to the DemocracyNYC and NYC Civic Engagement Commission’s monthly newsletter! We are happy to connect with you during this historical Inauguration week in which we welcomed a new administration and the first Black and South Asian-American woman as Vice President.

We look forward to collaborating with you in the coming months - please see some important updates, resources, upcoming events and volunteer opportunities below.

Who Are We?

DemocracyNYC

DemocracyNYC is a nonpartisan NYC mayoral initiative focused on increasing voter participation and civic engagement in NYC. Part of that mission is to encourage every eligible New Yorker to make their voice heard at the ballot box. DemocracyNYC also works to address and eliminate historic barriers to voting through public education, outreach, and policy reform efforts. Currently we are focusing on encouraging voters to participate in special and local elections by educating New Yorkers on ranked-choice voting and pushing for long term reform through legislation. Learn more here.

Civic Engagement Commision

The New York City Civic Engagement Commission (CEC) is a new city agency that was formed to promote civic participation and to improve civic trust. We believe that all New Yorkers should have access, knowledge, and confidence to engage fully with their government, in their communities, and in elections. CEC initiatives include: the “It’s Our Money” participatory budgeting youth pilot program, providing support to community boards, and serving language access needs of limited English proficient New Yorkers at poll sites. Get involved here and follow us on Twitter at @NYCCEC.

Upcoming Special Elections

Queens City Council District 24: Voters in Briarwood, Eastchester, Fresh Meadows, Hillcrest, Jamaica, Jamaica Estates, Jamaica Hills, Kew Gardens Hills, Parkway Village, and Pomonok will choose their new City representative. See below for what you need to know about this special election and find a social media toolkit here.

Key dates for Queens CD 24

• January 23: Early Voting Starts (Find your early voting site and hours here)
• January 26: Absentee Ballot Request Deadline (Request your absentee ballot here)
• January 31: Early Voting Ends
• February 2: Absentee Ballot Mail-In Deadline
• February 2: Election Day (Find your Election Day poll site and hours here)

What’s on the ballot?

• City Council District 24: Members of the City Council draft and vote on legislation, negotiate the City’s budget with the Mayor, and monitor City agencies.
  • See a sample ballot here.
  • Learn more about the City Council.
  • Learn about the candidates.

Other Special Election Key Dates

• 2/13-2/21 – Early Voting for CD 31 Special Election (former Councilmember Donovan Richards’ seat).
• 2/23 – CD 31 Special Election (former Councilmember Donovan Richards’ seat).
• 3/13-3/21 – Early Voting for CD 11 and CD 15 (former Councilmember Cohen's seat and former Councilmember Torres' seat).
• 3/23 – CD 11 and CD 15 Special Elections (former Councilmember Cohen's seat and former Councilmember Torres' seat).

Ranked Choice Voting

This is the first election in which the city will be using Ranked Choice Voting. See upcoming workshops and trainings below as well as additional online resources.

• Join DemocracyNYC’s voter-centric workshop that highlights the importance of participating in municipal elections and explains how RCV works tomorrow (January 23) at 11:30 AM. See sign up link here.
• DNYC, CEC, and CFB partnered with the Office of the Queens Borough President to provide two ranked choice voting training for community board leadership and residents of Queens. The first of these trainings was held on Tuesday, January 19 and the second will be held on Tuesday, January 26 at 5:30 PM. For more information, go to: queensbp.org/RSVP.

Additional RCV Resources:

• Ranked Choice Voting Toolkit
• BOE (in multiple languages)
• CEC
• Rank the Vote
• Video Tutorial
• FAQ

Democracy in the News:

Ranked Choice Voting Media Roundtable: Last Week, DemocracyNYC, the Civic Engagement Commission and Queens College co-hosted a media roundtable on Ranked Choice Voting. Deputy Mayor Thompson, Senior Advisor Laura Wood and Dr. Sarah Sayeed gave remarks and nineteen community and ethnic media outlets joined the event which can be viewed here: facebook.com/QueensCollege. The event received coverage from Weekly Bengalee - see page 47.

Rethink & Rebuild: Earlier this week, DemocracyNYC Senior Advisor and Counsel Laura Wood spoke at CitizensNYC’s event about DemocracyNYC's role in ensuring civic engagement is more inclusive in New York City. Watch the full event here.

Get Involved!

Volunteer Efforts

Join DemocracyNYC’s phone banking efforts and ensure NYC voters in Queens are aware of the upcoming Council District 24 Special Election and how they can get to the poll from January 16 to February 2. Sign up here: on.nyc.gov/COTVSpecialElection.

Volunteer Training

The NYC Civic Engagement Commission will be holding a Volunteer Training on Thursday, February 4 from 5:30 PM to 7 PM. The training will provide information about the Commission’s programs and initiatives and includes training on best practices and tools for Community Engagement. Click here to register for the training. To learn more about the Commission and volunteer opportunities visit the Get Involved page.

Social Media Toolkits

Help us promote our volunteer efforts and the upcoming special elections. See below for sample graphics and toolkits in various languages.

• Ranked Choice Voting Toolkit: http://on.nyc.gov/RCVToolkit
• Voter Outreach CD 24 Toolkit: http://on.nyc.gov/QueensCD24Election
• Volunteer Toolkit: http://on.nyc.gov/CD24Volunteer

Small Business Ambassador Program

We are asking small businesses located in neighborhoods with low voter engagement and turnout to serve as voter registration hubs. Why participate?

• Receive Free Advertising on LinkNYC Kiosks.
• Receive free advertising on the City’s Social Media: DemocracyNYC and our NYC government partners will advertise your business on social media through the election.
• Help Your Community: Serve as a civic hub for your community and help New Yorkers exercise their right to vote.

To learn more and/or sign-up go HERE.

Community Board Membership Applications

Apply to join your local community board where you can have a say on a range of issues, including land-use, transportation planning, and more.

• Find out what Community Board you live in here.
• To apply to serve on your board, click on your borough name to go directly to the application:
  • The Bronx: February 5, 2021
  • Brooklyn: February 12, 2021
  • Manhattan: February 1, 2021
  • Queens: February 19, 2021
  • Staten Island: Rolling Deadline

CEC’s “It’s Our Money” Youth Participatory Budgeting Project

Through the “It’s Our Money,” youth participatory budgeting pilot project, CEC asked youth to decide how to spend $100k. Now the agency is soliciting proposals from community organizations on how they would seek to meet these needs, as identified by our youth participants. The deadline for community organizations to submit their proposals is January 27, 2021. If you’re an interested community organization or youth looking to get engaged, join us at www.participate.nyc.gov/

Attend CEC’s Commission Meetings

The Civic Engagement Commission holds public meetings which all New Yorkers may attend. For information on meetings, click here or email us at info@civicengagement.nyc.gov to receive notifications.

Mark Your Calendar for the Following Events

• January 22-February 2 – Phone Bank: Join DemocracyNYC and call New Yorkers in Council District 24 for the February Special Election. See sign-up link here.
• January 23 – DemocracyNYC Voter Outreach Workshop: See RSVP link here.
• January 26 – RCV Training: Co-hosted by the Civic Engagement Commission, DemocracyNYC, the Campaign Finance Board and the Queens Borough President’s Office. See RSVP link here.
• January 27 – “It’s Our Money” Project: Deadline for Community Organizations to submit proposals.
• February 4 – NYC CEC Volunteer Training: Register for the training here.

Unsubscribe | Manage your preferences
PLEASE DO NOT REPLY TO THIS MESSAGE!