In the New York 2025 Primary Election that took place in June, the voter turnout for the city reached its highest level in over a decade. Voters between the ages of 18 and 29 had the highest turnout, at around 35.2%, which is twice the amount of 2021 (17.9%). New voters play a key role in determining the outcome of any election, as each generation comes with fresh ideas that may be different from those around them.
In New York’s General Election, which took place on November 4, Poly Prep students who had just turned 18 were able to participate in casting their votes, an experience that was both new, exciting, and slightly nerve-wracking.
Poly’s Student Body President Anna Brandmeyer ’26 shed light on her experience as a first-time voter in the 2025 General Election. Brandmeyer turned 18 in late October and had been looking forward to casting her vote shortly after. “I was always really excited that right when I turned 18, if an election fell in the year, I could vote immediately.” Brandmeyer began by highlighting the importance of pre-registering to vote, a process she took part in during the summer. “I voted on November 1, and I went with my mom and my dad…And there was no line. There were a bunch of stations. I checked in, and it was no big deal. I just told them my name, and they gave me the sheet to fill out.” While the experience was relatively clear and easy to follow, she also said that there were many more options on the ballot than she had initially expected, and questions she hadn’t been particularly ready to answer. “There were eight candidates, and obviously, I knew I was voting for one of them, but I was so confused…I’ve never even heard of most of these people.” Brandmeyer highlighted how voters do not just cast a vote for the mayor, but also for the Supreme Court Justices and many bills as well. Doing research prior to casting your ballot is very important, according to Brandmeyer. While she stated that she had done her research for the majority of the ballot, there were certain aspects of it she wished she were a bit more prepared for.
This experience is not unique to the NYC Mayoral Election, as Kaya Freeman ’26 described her experience voting in Nassau County for district attorneys, town judges, and other offices of the county. Freeman voted at a local polling station in Long Island, going after school with her mom, who she says made the process easier. “I thought it was going to be a really complicated process, but it was really simple,” Freeman shared. “You tell them your name and I thought I was gonna have to show ID because it was my first time voting, but I didn’t. I just had to confirm my address…So I think I was anticipating [that] I was not going to know what to do, but it was very straightforward,” she reflected. Freeman said that although she felt mostly prepared, there were a couple of parts of the ballot that she had only familiarized herself with the morning of. “I did a lot of Googling who these different people were, what they thought, why they were running, exactly what they were running for. But I feel like that was the only reason why I was informed.”
Both Freeman and Brandmeyer highlighted the importance of registering beforehand and making sure to be prepared with informed decisions. “I would say make sure to know when the last day to register to vote is. Because a lot of times it’s 10 days before the date of the election, so it changes every year. And I didn’t know that until I saw an Instagram post about that,” said Freeman. “It was a Saturday night, and it was 11 p.m., and I was doing the online registration because I didn’t know until that time that you have to do it 10 days before the election day. Otherwise, you can’t vote.”
Brandmeyer advised that first-time voters should not be nervous, but should also be prepared for everything on the ballot. “There’s a bunch of other little bills that they’re voting to be passed, so just make sure that you read about those bills, so you can make an informed decision not just on the main ticket, but on everything,” she said. Similarly, Freeman advised voters to get their information from reliable sources. “We see a lot of advertisements and campaigns and social media posts. I remember I kept seeing this YouTube ad of this one person who was running for Nassau County District Attorney. I kept seeing her YouTube video and her YouTube ad, but I had no idea what she actually stood for, [or] what she wanted,” Freeman shared.
Finally, Brandmeyer reflected on what voting really meant to her, and how it felt to do so for the first time. “I think that it really feels different when not only are you encouraging others to vote, but you yourself can vote,” said Brandmeyer. “It wasn’t just to learn about them. I actually have to make a decision based on the information that I learned. So that was definitely the big switch that was definitely a big deal,” she said.
In Poly’s Civics course, students have the opportunity to delve deeper into the United States government, which Freeman says helped shape her understanding of voting. “We’ve talked a little bit about how the government works and what your vote is so I don’t think [my perspective] really changed, but it definitely was very surreal in a sense that I actually know that I was a part of it for the first time,” said Freeman. Freeman ended by sharing that “it was just very weird to actually know, looking at the results after, that my vote was one of the hundreds of thousands of votes. That was pretty cool.”
