NYCHA Urges Residents to Participate in Resident Association Elections

NYCHA’s resident associations (RA) will hold board elections for the first time since the beginning of the pandemic. NYCHA resident associations are democratically elected organizations that work to improve quality of life in housing developments and the broader community. Resident associations are encouraged by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and advise housing authorities on matters ranging from maintenance to resident services.

This year’s elections will be held in four cycles. The first cycle will take place in August for the 36 developments  that currently have no representation.

Resident associations are led by an elected executive board featuring a president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, and sergeant-at-arms. Additionally, residents are represented at the citywide level by the Citywide Council of Presidents (CCOP). Collectively, these resident organizations serve as a powerful voice for residents.

RA boards are required to hold elections at least every three years. Unfortunately, due to COVID-19 elections have not been conducted since the fall of 2019. The pandemic interrupted the start of the new election cycle in the spring of 2020. As a result, 36 NYCHA developments were left without local representation, and many other boards were overdue for elections. For those with expired terms, HUD issued a COVID-19 guidance allowing NYCHA to continue recognizing those associations.

To make the election process more democratic and accessible, NYCHA’s Resident Engagement Department (RED) is revamping the process. In the past, every borough handled elections differently. Since 2015, when RED started facilitating the elections, the process has been continuously modernized to have as diverse and active representation as possible.

For the first time in the 30-year-history of NYCHA’s RA elections, in an effort to increase resident participation, residents will be able to vote both online and in person. To vote in the elections, residents must be a designated head of household (any age) or a household member 18 years or older whose name is on the lease. Electronic voting will require registration and can be done on a computer, tablet, or phone with internet access. All in-person voting will require photo identification to obtain a ballot and cast a vote.

Residents will have four hours to vote, with voting closing at 8 p.m. Immediately following the closing of the ballots, NYCHA will publicly count in-person and electronic results. Residents will be able to observe vote counting virtually or in-person, space permitting. At the end of the vote count, the newly elected board will wait a 72-hour period before the results are certified. If there is a tie for any office, a runoff election will need to be held.

As a NYCHA resident, you have the right to decide who will represent  you to work with NYCHA to make critical decisions on the quality of life  at your development.  Your participation is greatly needed to make this process successful. Getting involved is the first step to having input on creating the change that you deserve.  You can nominate yourself or someone else. To make resident engagement as inclusive as possible, NYCHA will provide interpretations for Spanish, Chinese, Russian, and American Sign Language.

Watch this video to learn more about the resident association election process: