In New York City, special elections are held to temporarily fill vacancies in city offices resulting from an elected official’s resignation, removal, death, or permanent incapacitation.
A special election takes place in a shorter time period than a primary or general election. Within three days of a vacancy for City Council member, borough president, comptroller, or public advocate, the mayor proclaims a special election date, and the ballot petitioning process begins. (In the case of a mayoral vacancy, the public advocate or the comptroller (in that order) shall temporarily act as mayor and issue the proclamation.) Petitions must be submitted to the New York City Board of Elections (City BOE) within 12 days of the mayor’s proclamation. Candidates who wish to participate in the Matching Funds Program must certify into the Program by registering as a participant within 14 days of the mayor’s proclamation. Candidates must also file a personal financial disclosure report with the New York City Conflicts of Interest Board (COIB).
Special elections are usually held on the first Tuesday at least 80 days after the office has been vacated, but the election can be scheduled shortly before or after this date in order to increase voter participation. The date of any special election is determined by the New York City Law Department in consultation with the mayor or acting mayor and is announced in the proclamation.
A special election temporarily fills a vacant seat until a primary and general election can be held to fill the seat for the remainder of the term. If the vacancy happens late enough in the term, the winner of the special election will serve out the remainder of the term.
Registering a Special Election Committee with the CFB
If a candidate who has already registered a committee with the CFB to run in the next citywide election wants to run in the special election, they must use that committee for the special election. Once a special election is proclaimed or the CFB has declared that it is “reasonably anticipated,” the candidate must update their registration in the CFB portal to reflect they are now running in the special election. The campaign’s C-SMART will be updated to reflect any differences between a regular and special election, such as the contribution limits. The existing campaign’s financial activity to date will count toward the special election limits.
If a candidate has not yet registered a committee with the CFB, they must do so before they begin raising or spending any money for the special election. If they wish to join the matching funds, program, they must register and choose to join the program within 14 days of the mayor’s proclamation. Review the Getting Started webpage and the CFB Portal User Guide for detailed instructions on how to register with the CFB. For assistance with registering a committee, please email [email protected].
Recordkeeping
All recordkeeping requirements for a special election are the same as those for a primary and general elections. See Recordkeeping in Chapter 10 of the Campaign Finance Handbook for detailed information. Campaigns must retain all records and documentation for five years from the date of submitting an approved final disclosure statement with the CFB.
Note: Campaigns are required to use the special election contribution card when collecting contributions once the special election has been proclaimed. For contributions raised by a pre-existing committee before the special election was proclaimed, the regular contribution card will be accepted as back-up documentation.
Filing Disclosure Statements
All candidates for special elections are required to register and file disclosure statements with the CFB. Candidates must disclose all contributions and expenditures in the disclosure statement due immediately after they are received/incurred using the CFB’s financial disclosure application, C-SMART. After the special election, candidates must continue to file periodic disclosure statements with the CFB until the campaign has filed an approved final disclosure statement (see the Cessation of Ongoing Disclosure guidance document). Any candidate who fails to comply with the disclosure statement requirements may be subject to financial penalties. All official CFB notices will be sent electronically to the campaign’s Message Center in the CFB Portal.
Disclosure statement deadlines will be posted on the Disclosure Deadlines page once a special election has been proclaimed.
Contribution Limits
The contribution limits for a special election are half the contribution limits for that office in a regular election cycle, including for contributions from individuals in the Doing Business Database. Just as in a regular cycle, the limits are different for participants in the matching funds program versus non-participants.
If a candidate who was already registered with the CFB has accepted contributions over the applicable special election limits, they must:
- refund the excess amounts to contributors by certified or bank check or, if applicable, through their credit card processor, and
- submit copies of the refund checks or credit card processor refund documentation with their first disclosure statement for the special election.
| Special Election Contribution Limits | ||
| Office | Participant | Non-Participant |
| Mayor, Public Advocate, Comptroller | $1,050 | $1,850 |
| Borough President | $800 | $1,325 |
| City Council | $525 | $800 |
Like in regular election cycles, candidates can accept a contribution from a political committee only if the committee has registered with the CFB for the next citywide election. View a list of registered political committees.
If an individual contributor has business dealings with the city at the time their contribution is made, lower limits apply, whether the candidate is a participant or non-participant. Doing business contributions are not eligible for matching funds and do not count toward the threshold to receive public funds. Access the Doing Business Database.
| Office | Special Election Doing Business Limit |
| Mayor, Public Advocate, Comptroller | $200 |
| Borough President | $160 |
| City Council | $125 |
Spending Limits
The spending limits for participants in the matching funds program in a special election are the same as the limits for a primary or general election in a regular election cycle. If a campaign has already spent money prior to registering for the special election, that spending will count towards their special election spending limit.
| Office | Special Election Spending Limit |
| Mayor | $7,932,000 |
| Public Advocate, Comptroller | $4,959,000 |
| Borough President | $1,785,000 |
| City Council | $207,000 |
To be eligible to receive public funds, candidates in a special election must join the matching funds program by the deadline and meet the following criteria:
- Be in compliance with the Campaign Finance Act and CFB Rules, including abiding by a strict spending limit.
- Indicate that they wish to participate in the matching funds program when registering their committee in the CFB Portal.
- Complete mandatory Compliance and C-SMART training.
- Submit a personal financial disclosure statement to the New York City Conflicts of Interest Board (COIB).
- Be on the ballot and face an opponent on the ballot.
- Meet the two-part financial threshold detailed below depending on office sought. Note that for mayor, public advocate, and comptroller, the minimum funds raised for a special election is half the minimum for a regular election.
| Special Election Thresholds | ||
| Office | Minimum Funds Raised | Number of Contributors |
| Mayor | $125,000 | 1,000 |
| Public Advocate, Comptroller | $62,500 | 500 |
| Borough President | $10,000 – $54,721* | 100† |
| City Council | $5,000 | 75‡ |
* The threshold amount is based upon the number of persons living in each borough, according to the 2020 Census and rounded to the nearest dollar. The amount for each borough is: Bronx ($29,453), Brooklyn ($54,721), Manhattan ($33,885), Queens ($48,109), and Staten Island ($10,000).
† Must be borough residents.
‡ Must be district residents.
In the case of a special election for mayor, public advocate, or comptroller, participating candidates are also required to take part in debates administered by the CFB to be eligible for public funds.
The matching rate and the maximum matchable amount per contributor are the same as in a regular election. Payment dates will be published once a special election has been proclaimed.
| Matching Rate | |||
| Office | Matching Rate | Maximum Matchable Per Contributor | Maximum Public Funds Per Contributor |
| Mayor, Public Advocate, Comptroller | $8-to-$1 | $250 | $2,000 |
| Borough President, City Council | $175 | $1,400 | |
| Maximum Public Funds Payments* | |
| Office | Special Election Maximum |
| Mayor | $7,050,667 |
| Public Advocate, Comptroller | $4,408,000 |
| Borough President | $1,586,667 |
| City Council | $184,000 |
* approximately 89% of the applicable spending limit.
All candidates must submit disclosure statements to the CFB. The Disclosure Deadlines page will be updated to include the disclosure deadlines once a special election has been proclaimed.