New York City's post-election count entered its next stage Wednesday as the Board of Elections began canvass preparations at 10 a.m. The city board says the work will continue daily until it is complete, including weekends. The schedule is 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on weekdays and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays, subject to confirmation with the relevant borough office.
Election-night totals included early voting, Election Day scanner results and valid mail ballots that had already been canvassed and scanned. They did not include affidavit ballots. The Board of Elections also continues reviewing eligible absentee, early-mail, military and special ballots received under the statutory deadlines. That is why a contest can gain votes after nearly every scanner appears to have reported.
The board reported that 234,220 mail ballots had been distributed citywide and 123,828 returned as of its posted recap. Of those, 109,099 had been deemed valid and 97,801 had been scanned into the election-night reporting total. Manhattan accounted for 34,408 valid and scanned ballots, Brooklyn 19,052, Queens 26,466, the Bronx 11,019 and Staten Island 6,856.
Those categories describe different stages, not conflicting totals. A returned envelope may still require review; a valid ballot may not yet have been scanned; and a timely ballot can arrive after Election Day. Early-mail and absentee ballots postmarked by November 3 may be received through November 10. Military, special federal and overseas ballots carrying an Election Day postmark may arrive through November 30 under the longer deadline identified by the city board.
The canvass also includes procedures for ballot defects that can legally be cured. Voters contacted about a correctable issue should follow instructions from the Board of Elections and respond within the stated period. The public should not assume that every uncounted ballot is invalid or that every returned envelope will be accepted. Eligibility, signature and timeliness rules are applied before a ballot enters the certified total.
Candidate and party representatives entitled to watchers may observe portions of the mail-ballot review. State law changed the objection process in 2021: watchers cannot make an objection that automatically sets an envelope aside, and they cannot inspect the face of the ballot. Election officials conduct the canvass under state law, board rules and any applicable court orders. Observation is part of transparency, but administration remains the board's responsibility.
For voters following a close race, the most useful information is the size and type of the outstanding vote. A district-reporting percentage measures scanner uploads, not the completion of every ballot category. A margin can therefore change after the display reaches a high percentage. Certification comes only after borough boards complete the required recanvass and ballot review and transmit the final records through the legal process. Different boroughs may also finish categories at different times, so citywide additions need not arrive in a uniform sequence.
The count is deliberately slower than the first-night display because it resolves exceptions that scanners cannot settle at a poll site. The Board of Elections will continue publishing results and mail-ballot recaps as the process advances. Until certification, precise reporting should label totals unofficial, identify the timestamp and avoid converting a projection into a government result. Voters can also use the city's ballot-tracking system for the status of their own mailed ballot rather than inferring individual acceptance from a citywide recap table.
Primary sources: NYC Board of Elections canvass and mail-ballot information; NYC Board of Elections unofficial results portal. Reviewed November 4, 2026. Development: Canvass preparations begin November 4, 2026.