5 things to watch out for in US off-year elections

It’s Election Day in the United States.

These so-called “off-year” elections do not include presidential or congressional races, but there are still several crucial votes to watch tonight.

New York City will choose its next mayor, in a battle between a younger progressive Democrat and a member of the party’s old guard. The states of Virginia and New Jersey are scheduled to elect new governors, and the results of these competitions may be an indicator of the midterm congressional elections next year.

Californians are also set to decide whether to redraw the maps of their U.S. House districts in a rare mid-decade redistricting, as Democrats try to counter Republican efforts to give their party an advantage in next year’s midterm elections.

Here’s what you need to know.

All eyes will be on the Big Apple as 34-year-old state Assemblyman Zahran Mamdani attempts to cause political disruption in his bid to become New York City’s youngest mayor in more than a century.

Mamdani, democratic socialist, The political establishment was shocked When he bested former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the Democratic primary this summer. Undeterred, Cuomo continued his campaign as an independent. Meanwhile, Republican Curtis Sliwa resisted pressure to drop out of the race to make way for Cuomo.

If Mamdani wins, he will become the city’s first Muslim mayor. Democrats across the country will be watching to see if his heavy focus on cost-of-living issues like rent, groceries and wages can serve as effective messaging in future races.

Although Mamdani heads into election night with a proposed lead on the ballot, the gap between him and Cuomo has narrowed. In the final stretch of the campaign, Cuomo attacked Mamdani on crime and public safety, and said the young politician lacked the experience needed to lead America’s largest city.

California’s Democratic leadership is asking voters for permission to redraw the state’s congressional districts in the middle of the decade. This is unusual in California, which by law relies on a nonpartisan commission to draw its congressional maps once a decade, based on census data.

However, as Republican-led states like Texas and Missouri seek to hastily redraw congressional maps to give their party an advantage in the 2026 midterm elections, California Governor Gavin Newsom said He wants to counter the losses through redistricting In his own state.

California’s Proposition 50 would allow temporary use of new congressional district maps through 2030. The campaign has attracted $158 million in donations, according to the Los Angeles Times, with Democratic supporters vastly outpacing Republican opposition efforts.

California Republicans, who hold only nine of the 52 U.S. House seats, strongly oppose the plan.

A UC Berkeley/IGS poll indicates that 60% of likely California voters support Proposition 50, while 38% oppose it. The breakdown was largely partisan, with 93% of Democrats saying they would choose “yes” while 91% of Republicans chose “no.”

New Jersey is considered a blue state, but opinion polls indicate a close race between Democrat Mickey Sherrill and Republican Jack Ciattarelli. It’s one of two gubernatorial races this year that could indicate how Americans feel about the current political climate.

Sherrill currently represents New Jersey’s 11th District in Congress, and Ciattarelli is a former state Assemblyman.

New Jersey is considered a Democratic-leaning state, but it has had Republican governors. The most recent, Chris Christie, served two terms between 2010 and 2018.

The rhetoric in the race has become heated. Ciattarelli and his supporters ran political ads that included clips of Sherrill giving hesitant answers in interviews about her policies.

It also caught the attention of nationally known names from both parties. Democratic stars such as former President Barack Obama and former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg campaigned with Sherrill. President Donald Trump attended a virtual rally for Tatarelli, and conservative activist Jack Posobiec supported him.

Virginia’s leadership typically swings between Democrats and Republicans, meaning the outcome of this year’s gubernatorial election could serve as an indicator of voters’ mood.

Regardless of which candidate succeeds, the state will elect its first female governor this year. Voters will choose between Democrat Abigail Spanberger, a US Congresswoman, and Republican Winsome Earl Sears, the state’s current lieutenant governor.

If Earl Sears wins, she will become the first black woman to be elected to lead a US state in the country’s history.

Virginia is bordered by liberal-leaning Washington, D.C., to the north, with many residents working in the nation’s capital or for the federal government. But the state also has large pockets of conservative voters throughout its rural areas, and swing voters.

Spanberger highlighted the economic impact of Trump’s cuts to the federal government, which has affected employment in Virginia. Earl Sears promoted Virginia’s economy under the leadership of the Republican Party. But it has also turned to cultural topics like transgender issues, which Republicans successfully used as a wedge issue in last year’s presidential election.

Although he was not on the ballot, Trump’s name looms large in this election.

The New York City mayor’s race is how the city’s next leader will deal with the Trump administration, which has meddled in city politics. Cuomo touts his experience as a governor dealing with the first administration as a reason voters chose him.

The president has hinted that he will punish the city if voters choose Mamdani.

“It would be difficult for me as president to give a lot of money to New York, because if you have a communist running New York, all you’re doing is wasting the money you’re sending there.” Trump said In a 60 Minutes interview that aired Sunday. (Mamdani is not a communist.)

Trump launched a redistricting fight that pushed California to put Proposition 50 on the ballot, and he also backed Ciattarelli in the New Jersey governor’s race.