The fastest way to find your City Council district and community board in New York City is to use the NYC Board of Elections district maps at vote.nyc/page/nyc-district-maps for your council district, and the NYC Mayor’s Community Affairs Unit borough pages at nyc.gov/site/cau/community-boards for your community board. Together, those two officials decide what gets built on your block, how city money is spent in your neighborhood, and which voice represents you at City Hall. With the June 23, 2026 Primary Election on the calendar and the official contest list now published, this is the right week to learn the difference between the body you elect and the body that advises it — because both shape your daily life.
The June 23, 2026 Primary: where City Council fits
The NYC Board of Elections has published the official June 23, 2026 Primary Election Contest List, available as a PDF or DOC on vote.nyc. Designating petition hearings were held on April 28 and April 29, 2026 at the BOE’s Executive Office at 32-42 Broadway, 7th Floor, Manhattan. Early voting for the primary runs from Saturday, June 13, 2026 through Sunday, June 21, 2026, and primary day polls are open from 6:00 AM to 9:00 PM on Tuesday, June 23, 2026.
This primary uses ranked-choice voting for municipal races, including City Council, allowing voters to rank up to five candidates in order of preference. RCV applies to primaries and special elections for Mayor, Public Advocate, Comptroller, Borough President, and City Council — not to general elections or to state and federal offices appearing on the same ballot.
If you do not know your election district, assembly district, or City Council district, the BOE’s polling site lookup at vote.nyc/page/find-your-poll-site returns all of them based on your registered address. For the most recent guidance on polling locations and absentee options, see our NYC polling site and early voting guide for 2026.
What the New York City Council actually is
The New York City Council is the city’s legislative body. According to the Mayor’s Community Affairs Unit, the Council has 51 elected members, one from each council district, covering all five boroughs. The Council enacts local legislation, approves the city’s annual budget, and exercises oversight authority over city agencies. Council Members also serve on the District Service Cabinet of each community board within their district.
City Council seats are filled in city elections held in odd-numbered years — the last full citywide council election was held in 2025. The June 23, 2026 primary therefore does not include the full body, but it does include any City Council seats facing special elections, redistricting-driven contests, or other off-cycle contests as listed on the BOE’s official contest list. Voters should consult that contest list directly to confirm whether their district has a council race on the June 2026 ballot.
A recent example: District 3 special election
On April 28, 2026, voters in City Council District 3 — covering the West Side of Manhattan from Greenwich Village through Chelsea, Hell’s Kitchen, and parts of Midtown — participated in a nonpartisan special election to fill the seat vacated by former Council Member Erik Bottcher, who resigned effective February 4, 2026. The vacancy was triggered by Bottcher’s election to the State Senate. Independent nominating petitions for the District 3 special election were due to the BOE by March 30, 2026.
Finding your City Council district
Council district boundaries were redrawn following the 2020 Census, and the current maps used for the June 2026 primary are posted as borough-by-borough PDFs at vote.nyc/page/nyc-district-maps. The 51 districts are distributed across the boroughs as follows, based on the maps currently listed on the BOE site:
- Manhattan (New York County): Districts 1 through 10
- Bronx: Districts 8, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, and 22 (some districts cross borough lines)
- Brooklyn (Kings County): Districts 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, and 50
- Queens: Districts 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, and 34
- Staten Island (Richmond County): Districts 49, 50, and 51
Because some districts cross borough lines, the same district number can appear on more than one borough’s list. The authoritative way to determine your district is the BOE polling site lookup, which returns your council district based on the address on your voter registration.
What the New York City Council does
The Council’s enumerated powers come from the New York City Charter. In practice, the Council:
- Passes local laws — including zoning text amendments, housing rules, traffic regulations, and consumer protections;
- Approves the city’s annual expense and capital budgets, including amendments to the Mayor’s executive budget;
- Holds the final vote on most Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) applications, with the option to approve, disapprove, or modify Planning Commission decisions;
- Confirms certain mayoral appointments, including commissioners of several city agencies;
- Conducts oversight hearings on city agency performance and contracts; and
- Member-by-member, designates “member items” or discretionary funding to local nonprofits and community organizations within their districts.
Each Council Member is elected to a four-year term, with two exceptions: terms that follow a redistricting cycle are typically shortened to two years to realign elections with the new district boundaries.
What a New York City Community Board actually is
Community boards are New York City’s neighborhood-level advisory bodies. According to the Mayor’s Community Affairs Unit, there are 59 community boards across the five boroughs, and each board may have up to 50 unsalaried members. Half of each board’s members are nominated by the City Council Members whose districts overlap the community district; all members are formally appointed by the Borough President for two-year terms.
The 59 community districts are distributed as follows: 12 in the Bronx, 18 in Brooklyn, 12 in Manhattan, 14 in Queens, and 3 in Staten Island. The current number was set in the 1975 revision of the New York City Charter, which also established the position of District Manager for each community district and created the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP).
Members must reside, work, attend school in, or have a significant interest in the community district they serve. Each board is run day to day by a paid District Manager, who maintains the office, handles complaints, and coordinates with city agencies. Boards meet at least once a month in publicly noticed sessions that are open to all residents.
What community boards do — and don’t do
Community boards are advisory. They do not have the authority to order a city agency to do anything. What they can do, per the City Charter and city practice, is significant:
- Review land use applications. Most ULURP applications — zoning changes, special permits, site selections, and dispositions of city property — must be referred to the community board for a public hearing and a non-binding recommendation before they move to the City Planning Commission and the City Council.
- Issue advisory votes on liquor license applications reviewed by the State Liquor Authority for premises in their district.
- Participate in the city budget process by submitting prioritized lists of expense and capital needs to the Mayor and to their Borough President each year.
- Process certain permits, including street activity permits for block parties and street fairs in many districts.
- Hold public hearings on any matter affecting the district — from sanitation pickups to school-zone safety to homeless-services siting.
- Prepare 197-a plans. Since the 1990 charter revision, boards have had the authority under Section 197-a to draft long-range comprehensive plans for their district and submit them to the City Planning Commission and City Council for approval.
Although their formal power is limited to recommendation, community board votes carry weight at the Department of City Planning, at the State Liquor Authority, and at the City Council, where members often defer to the local board on land-use matters within their district.
Who serves on the Borough Board and Borough Service Cabinet
Each borough also has a Borough Board, made up of the Borough President, the Council Members representing the borough, and the chairperson of each community board in the borough. Community board chairs vote only on matters directly affecting their own community district. The Borough Board initiates and reviews comprehensive or special-purpose plans for the borough and prepares a consolidated statement of expense and capital budget priorities.
The Borough Service Cabinet, also chaired by the Borough President, brings together the borough-level officials appointed by each city agency that delivers services in the borough. It coordinates service delivery and addresses interagency problems.
How to apply for a community board seat
Community board applications are accepted by the Borough President’s office in each borough on an annual cycle. The 2026 application cycles ran through early 2026 in each borough, with deadlines varying by borough — Brooklyn’s deadline was February 6, 2026; Bronx applications closed February 23, 2026; Manhattan’s deadline was February 27, 2026. Queens, Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, and Staten Island each run their own intake portals on the Borough President’s website. New applications for the 2027 term will open later this year on each borough’s schedule.
Eligibility requirements are set by the City Charter: applicants must be at least 16 years old and must reside, work, or attend school in the community district they wish to serve. Applicants must complete an online application, submit a biography or resume, and meet applicable conflict-of-interest standards. Many boroughs also conduct a short interview with the Borough President’s staff before recommending appointments.
If your goal is service without a board seat, you can also apply to sit on a board committee. Non-board members are eligible to join most committees, which carry much of the substantive work between full board meetings.
How to attend a community board meeting
Every community board posts its meeting calendar on the board’s own website, which is linked from the Mayor’s Community Affairs Unit borough pages: Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island. Full board meetings happen at least monthly and are open to the public. Most boards reserve time on the agenda for general public comment and a separate slot for testimony on specific land-use or licensing items.
If you cannot identify your community district, the same BOE polling-site lookup that returns your council district will also return your community district. The Department of City Planning’s NYC Planning Profiles tool publishes a one-page demographic and zoning profile for each of the 59 community districts.
City Council vs. Community Board: a side-by-side
| Question | City Council | Community Board |
|---|---|---|
| Total bodies | 1 Council with 51 districts | 59 boards across 5 boroughs |
| How members are chosen | Elected by voters in each district | Appointed by Borough President; half from Council Member nominees |
| Compensation | Salaried | Unsalaried (volunteer) |
| Term length | 4 years (2 years after redistricting) | 2 years |
| Maximum members per body | 1 per district | Up to 50 per board |
| Authority over agencies | Can pass laws, set budget, conduct oversight | Advisory only; no power to compel agencies |
| Role in ULURP | Final vote | First mandatory referral and public hearing |
| Eligibility to serve | U.S. citizen, registered voter, district resident, age 18+ | Age 16+, live/work/attend school in the district |
Frequently Asked Questions
How many City Council districts are there in New York City?
There are 51 City Council districts in New York City, one for each elected Council Member. The boundaries were redrawn after the 2020 Census, and the current district maps are posted on the NYC Board of Elections website at vote.nyc/page/nyc-district-maps.
How many community boards are there in New York City?
There are 59 community boards across the five boroughs — 12 in the Bronx, 18 in Brooklyn, 12 in Manhattan, 14 in Queens, and 3 in Staten Island. The number was set in the 1975 revision of the New York City Charter.
What is the difference between a City Council district and a community board district?
A City Council district elects one Council Member to the city’s legislative body. A community board district is a smaller advisory unit; multiple community districts can sit within a single Council district, and Council district lines do not always line up with community district lines. The Council has lawmaking and budget authority; community boards are advisory.
Do I vote for my community board members?
No. Community board members are appointed by the Borough President for two-year terms. Half of the appointments to each board come from nominees of the City Council Members whose districts overlap the community district. The boards themselves are advisory, not elected.
Are City Council races on the June 23, 2026 ballot?
Some City Council contests appear on the June 23, 2026 Primary Election ballot. The complete list is published by the NYC Board of Elections as the June 23, 2026 Primary Election Contest List. Voters can confirm whether their own district has a race by entering their registered address into the BOE polling site lookup at vote.nyc/page/find-your-poll-site.
How do I apply to serve on a community board?
Each Borough President’s office runs its own annual application cycle. For 2026 terms, deadlines ran in February 2026; new application windows for the 2027 term typically open in late 2026 and early 2027. Applicants must be at least 16 years old and must live, work, or attend school in the community district they want to serve. Apply through the Borough President’s website for your borough.
What is ULURP and what role does the community board play?
ULURP is the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure established by the 1975 charter revision. Most land use applications — zoning changes, special permits, site selections, and dispositions of city property — must be reviewed first by the community board, which holds a public hearing and issues a non-binding recommendation. The application then proceeds to the Borough President, City Planning Commission, and ultimately the City Council, which has the final vote.
Can non-members participate in community board work?
Yes. Community board meetings are open to the public, and most boards reserve agenda time for public comment. Non-board residents can also apply to serve on board committees, which carry much of the substantive work between full board meetings.
Bottom line
Your City Council Member writes the laws and votes the budget. Your community board doesn’t have the same hard power, but it sees every land use application that touches your neighborhood, every liquor license that lands on your block, and every budget request that goes into the Borough President’s recommendations. Knowing both — and showing up to both — is how a New Yorker turns a registered address into a represented one. The June 23, 2026 Primary is the next moment that representation gets renewed at the council level. Confirm your district, check the contest list, and mark June 13 through June 21 for early voting.
Sources: NYC Board of Elections (June 2026 Primary Election, June 23 Contest List, Current NYC District Maps), NYC Mayor’s Community Affairs Unit (About Community Boards). All facts verified against primary sources within 24 hours of publication.
