Fact Check: Claims of Duplicate Candidates on NYC Ballot Examined

Musk Sparks Controversy Over NYC Ballot Design as Voters Head to Polls

Elon Musk stirred controversy Tuesday by questioning the legitimacy of New York City’s election system as voters cast their ballots in the mayoral race. The X (formerly Twitter) owner shared a photo of the city’s ballot, claiming it was “a scam” due to its design and voting procedures.

“The New York City ballot form is a scam! No ID is required. Other mayoral candidates appear twice. (Andrew) Cuomo’s name is last in bottom right,” wrote Musk, who had publicly backed Cuomo over Democratic frontrunner Zohran Mamdani and Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa.

Voting experts quickly pointed out that Musk’s criticisms reflected a misunderstanding of New York’s long-established electoral practices rather than evidence of irregularities.

New York’s voter identification system follows standard procedures used in many states. First-time voters who didn’t present ID during registration must show identification at polling places, but returning voters simply verify their identity by signature matching against official records. All voters must present identification during initial voter registration.

Musk’s complaint about candidates appearing twice on the ballot stems from New York’s fusion voting system, a practice dating back to the 19th century that allows multiple parties to nominate the same candidate.

“Having a candidate appear on the ballot twice is not a scam at all,” explained Jerry H. Goldfeder, senior counsel at law firm Cozen O’Connor and an election law expert. “New York has had fusion voting for many, many years.”

In the current mayoral race, Mamdani secured nominations from both the Democratic Party and the Working Families Party, while Sliwa appeared under both the Republican Party and his self-created Protect Animals Party. Fusion voting allows voters to select not just their preferred candidate but also which party line they want their vote to count under.

Mamdani himself noted on election day that he voted for his own candidacy on the Working Families Party line, demonstrating how the system works in practice.

Votes for a candidate count toward their total regardless of which party line they’re cast under. “Although candidates may appear on more than one party’s line, voters can only vote for them once,” clarified Julia Sass Rubin, a public policy professor at Rutgers University.

This system serves an important purpose in New York’s political landscape. Voters often choose to support prominent candidates on minor-party lines to signal the importance of that party’s positions or to help smaller parties maintain ballot access for future elections.

Dan Cantor, who cofounded the Working Families Party and now leads the Center for Ballot Freedom, explained that fusion voting prevents third parties from becoming merely “spoilers” by allowing cross-party alliances. “It allows voters the ability to vote their values and send a message to the candidate that he or she should be attentive to the minor party’s concerns,” Cantor said.

As for Cuomo’s ballot placement, which Musk also criticized, election rules dictated his position. After losing the Democratic primary, the former New York governor created his own independent party to remain in the race. Per established protocols, this new party was placed lower on the ballot than longer-established political parties.

Today, New York and Connecticut are the only states that still permit fusion voting, though the practice once had wider adoption. Historically, cross-nominations have helped elevate important issues into mainstream political discourse, including the abolition of slavery and expanded political representation.

The system has played a decisive role in major elections. In the closely contested 1960 presidential race, John F. Kennedy secured New York’s crucial 45 electoral votes through fusion voting, with Liberal Party line votes providing his margin of victory over Richard Nixon in the state. Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan also benefited from fusion alliances in New York.

Tabatha Abu El-Haj, co-author of a recent American Bar Association paper on fusion voting, noted the irony in Musk’s criticism: “Back when Elon Musk threw out the notion of forming a third-party, many commentators noted the only way that party could actually influence the direction of the Republican Party would be if it operated as a fusion party.”

As voters make their choices in New York City’s mayoral race, the controversy highlights how even well-established electoral systems can become subjects of confusion and contention in today’s polarized political environment.