Working Families Party passes the Conservatives and is set to take Row C on New York ballots

Tuesday's election did more than return Gov. Kathy Hochul to office. It also looks set to reshuffle the rows on every New York ballot for the next four years. The Working Families Party drew far more votes on its line than the Conservative Party, putting the progressive party in position to move from Row D to Row C, right after the Democrats and Republicans.

The numbers

With 12,179 of 13,187 election districts reporting, the state Board of Elections' unofficial results show:

• Hochul on the Democratic line: 3,134,511 votes, plus 364,885 on the Working Families line (59.1% in all).
• Bruce Blakeman on the Republican line: 2,080,003 votes, plus 229,593 on the Conservative line (39.7% in all).
• A third line, Vote Affordable, drew 39,451 votes for Blakeman.

Four years ago the order was reversed: 313,187 people voted for Republican Lee Zeldin on the Conservative line, while 261,323 backed Hochul on the WFP line, the Times Union reported before the vote. That makes the WFP's total up nearly 40%, according to amNY. In New York City alone, 207,873 people voted for Hochul on the WFP line, almost 14% of her citywide support on election night, amNY said.

Why the row matters

New York lets candidates run on several party lines at once, and every vote counts toward the candidate regardless of line. But the parties care which line voters pick: the governor's race decides whether a party keeps its automatic spot on the ballot, and the party whose candidate for governor gets the third-most votes is listed third, the Times Union explained. Conservative Party Chairman Gerard Kassar told the paper Row C is “more than bragging rights.”

The WFP said it expects to secure Row C for the next four years. “Our independent ballot line is a powerful vehicle for organizing,” state director Jasmine Gripper said in a statement published by the Yonkers Times.

What it could mean in Albany

Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who said he cast his own vote for Hochul on the WFP line, argued Wednesday that the showing proves the constituency for working people is growing, amNY reported. Progressives hope it gives them leverage to push Hochul toward higher taxes on the wealthy and corporations, which she has resisted. Votes on the WFP line do not necessarily mean support for any one proposal, amNY noted.

Not final yet

The state results are unofficial and do not yet include a large number of unscanned emergency Election Day ballots from Westchester County, the Board of Elections says. Counties usually certify general election results within about 25 days. The WFP's lead over the Conservative line is about 135,000 votes.

See how each borough voted.