NYC Primary Elections 2019: What You Need To Know

NEW YORK — New York City voters will go to the polls for the third time in four months on Tuesday to nominate candidates for City Council, district attorney and judicial jobs.

The June 25 election will be the first held since lawmakers in Albany moved primaries for state-level offices from September to the last Tuesday in June. The shift was meant to align state contests with federal primaries, of which there are none this year.

The race for Queens district attorney has dominated headlines in recent months. Six candidates are competing for the Democratic nomination to replace longtime DA Richard Brown, who died in May after nearly three decades in office.

But that won't be the only race on the ballot. Voters in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens will also pick candidates for civil and surrogate court judgeships. And Democrats in Brooklyn's 45th City Council District will nominate a permanent replacement for Public Advocate Jumaane Williams less than two months after a special election for his former seat.

Here's what New Yorkers need to know for Tuesday's primaries.

How Do I Vote?

Polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Tuesday, June 25. Primaries are only open to voters registered with the relevant political party. That means only registered Democrats can vote in Democratic primaries.

Find your polling place here.

Queens

District Attorney

Queens Democrats will choose their party's nominee for district attorney. This year is the first time the seat has been open since 1991, when Brown took the post.

There were seven candidates in the tight race until Friday, when City Councilman Rory Lancman dropped out and endorsed Queens Borough President Melinda Katz. Katz and public defender Tiffany Cabán are at the head of the pack in what has become a sort of proxy battle between the borough's Democratic establishment and progressive insurgents.

Another contender is Greg Lasak, a former Queens prosecutor and judge. They're joined on the ballot by Betty Lugo, Mina Malik and Jose Nieves.

The primary's winner will be heavily favored to win the Nov. 5 general election against the sole Republican candidate, Daniel Kogan.

READ MORE: Meet The Democratic Primary Candidates For Queens DA

Civil Court

Attorney Lumarie Maldonado Cruz and defense lawyer Wyatt Gibbons will face off in Queens's first competitive primary for civil court in decades. The ultimate winner of the countywide election will serve a 10-year term overseeing "everyday legal problems," from small claims to commercial landlord-tenant disputes.

READ MORE: Queens Civil Court Election Guide: Meet The Candidates

Brooklyn

Surrogate's Court

Incumbent Judge Margarita Lopez Torres is facing two challengers in her re-election bid: Elena Baron and Meredith Jones. The ultimate winner of this race to claim one of Brooklyn's two surrogate's court seats will get a 14-year term overseeing cases involving the dead — such as wills, property transfers and payments of debts — along with guardianship and adoption cases.

Countywide Civil Court

There are also primaries for civil court in Brooklyn. Private attorney Edward King and court attorney referee Derefim Bernadette Neckles will face off in a borough-wide race in pursuit of a 10-year term handling lawsuits involving monetary claims for damages up to $25,000.

Civil Court — 6th District

There's a four-way race for this civil court judgeship covering parts of Park Slope, Prospect Heights, Crown Heights, Flatbush, Kensington and Midwood. Law clerk Tehilah Berman, feminist lawyer Caroline Cohen, private attorney Alice Nicholson and law clerk Chinyelu Udoh will face off for the 10-year term.

READ MORE: Brooklyn Judicial Elections Guide: What You Need To Know

City Council. 45th District

Voters elected Farah Louis to this Flatbush seat in a special election last month to succeed Williams, who was elected public advocate in February. Louis's victory locked up the seat for the rest of this year, but she'll have to ward off other candidates on Tuesday to serve out the rest of Williams's term, which ends in 2021.

The other hopefuls include Monique Chandler-Waterman, Anthony Alexis and Xamayla Rose. The winner of the primary is reportedly likely to run unopposed in November.

READ MORE: Flatbush City Council Primary: A Voters' Guide For District 45

Manhattan

Civil Court — 4th District

Two Democrats are vying for this civil court judgeship covering parts of Manhattan's east side, including Stuyvesant Town, Gramercy, Kips Bay, Murray Hill and Midtown East. Lynne Fischman Uniman, an attorney and New York Law School professor, is running against E. Grace Park, an assistant attorney-in-charge at the Legal Aid Society's juvenile rights practice.

READ MORE: Manhattan's East Side Judicial Primary: What You Need To Know