Republicans in New York are winning on new voter enrollment — by a lot

Democrats lost 108,219 enrollees over the past year, new data shows.

Good afternoon — It’s Monday and Sandwich Day.

In today’s CapCon:

• New party enrollment data from the state shows that Republicans in New York are growing their numbers while Democrats are not.

• Amid the uncertainty of SNAP, a new bill would require state education officials to figure out how schools could send food home with kids.

• A bill headed to Hochul could make operating a day care outside New York City slightly more fiscally feasible.

• This Week in New York History: Martin Van Buren, Jell-O and the Bronx Zoo.

Names in today’s CapCon: Republicans, Democrats, Kathy Hochul, Rachel May, Christopher Ryan, Andrew Hevesi

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(Jim Franco/Times Union)

☑️ Republicans have added voters while Democrats see enrollment drop, new data shows

Democrats in New York have a big problem leading into next year’s elections. They’re losing registered voters.

The state Board of Elections released new data Monday on party enrollment across the state as of Nov. 1. The agency does that twice a year.

It’s an easy way to see how enrollment has changed for each of the parties with automatic ballot access. That includes the Democrat, Republican, Conservative and Working Families Party lines.

They also track how many voters have opted not to register with a specific party. Independent voters are the second-largest voting bloc in the state behind Democrats.

It’s been a long-held view that Democrats in New York are not vulnerable to Republican defeat statewide. The last time that happened was when former Gov. George E. Pataki was elected to his final term in 2002.

But the new state data shows that Democrats are losing ground with registered voters while Republican enrollment is growing. Let’s get into the numbers.

(Will Waldron/Times Union)

⬆️ Republicans have gained thousands of new registered voters

I compared the new data to what was on file in November 2024 — when Democrats flipped a handful of seats in Congress — and November 2022 — when Gov. Kathy Hochul was last up for reelection.

2022 vs. 2025

Let’s start by comparing the new enrollment numbers to what was reported in 2022. That’ll give us a sense of how voter enrollment has changed between then and now, one year out from the next election for governor.