400,000 New Yorkers have voted early with three days left. What to know before Tuesday

Through Thursday, 400,137 New York City voters had checked in at early voting sites, according to the Board of Elections' unofficial count. Early voting continues through Sunday, Nov. 1. Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3.

Why it matters to residents: besides races for governor, Congress and the state legislature, every city ballot carries five proposed changes to the City Charter. They would affect how the city approves outdoor dining, buys goods and services, and runs other parts of government.

The early vote so far

The Board of Elections' cumulative check-ins through Oct. 29:

• Brooklyn: 119,215
• Manhattan: 110,908
• Queens: 95,982
• Bronx: 41,629
• Staten Island: 32,403

The first weekend drew more than 165,000 voters, NY1 reported. By Tuesday, amNY reported, the city's early turnout was running ahead of 2022, the last time a governor's race topped the ballot. Daily turnout has slowed since the opening weekend: 86,215 people voted on the first day and 43,110 on Thursday, by the board's count.

Federal agents and the polls. State Attorney General Letitia James reminded New Yorkers on Oct. 27 that military troops and armed federal officers, including ICE, Customs and Border Protection and FBI agents, are barred from polling places under state and federal law, PoliticsNY reported. We wrote last week about reports of federal door-knocking that raised intimidation concerns.

What our records add on the ballot questions

We explained all five charter questions and how they would change the Council's role, and looked at Question 1 and the outdoor dining permit backlog.

Question 2 came up at Thursday's Contracts hearing. Council Member Lincoln Restler, who chairs the Committee on Contracts, asked Kim Yu, director of the Mayor's Office of Contract Services, about it. The measure would let the mayor delegate approval of contracts over $5 million that are awarded without competitive bidding to agency chief contracting officers, which the mayor cannot do today. The charter commission estimated that would save one to two weeks per contract (1:55:15). It would also make permanent the use of a public comment period in place of a public hearing for contract awards. The commission estimated the changes together could save up to 30 days on a procurement, and Yu said she agreed (1:57:18). Yu said such hearings are held less than once a month.

Near the end of the hearing, Restler noted for the record that the administration doesn't need a charter amendment to hold quarterly Procurement Policy Board meetings, "but mandating it is a welcome thing" (2:03:22). We covered the rest of that hearing here.

Voting from jail. On Oct. 22 the Council passed two bills on voting from city jails, as early voting began.

What's next

Early voting sites are open through Sunday. On Tuesday, polls are open 6 a.m. to 9 p.m., and voters must go to their assigned Election Day site, which can differ from their early voting site. Voters can look up their sites on the Board of Elections' website. If voters approve the charter questions, most take effect on the schedules set in each proposal.