Ahead of November 5, “Vote Yes on 1 and Nix 2 through 6” became a popular refrain on liberal social media, directing voters in New York City to approve an “Equal Rights Amendment” enshrining abortion rights into the state Constitution and to reject ballot proposals seen as a power grab for Mayor Eric Adams.

Michael Sisitzky, an assistant legal director at the New York Civil Liberties Union, says that the group had only seven weeks to put together a campaign to educate voters about Proposals 2 through 6, which were added to the ballot at the last minute. In order to get charter-related proposals on the ballot, the city must create a temporary revision commission. Past reviews have normally taken up to a year. This time, it was rushed through in just two months.

The purpose of most of these measures was not to improve the quality of life or services for New Yorkers, Sisitzky says, but to establish greater mayoral control. He describes most of them as “dangerous.” The NYCLU placed ads making the case against the proposed measures, and sent out representatives from over 60 organizations to speak to voters. “We saw how quickly people were persuaded and understood that this was a power grab,” Sisitzky told The Nation.

But it wasn’t enough. Of the six initiatives listed on the New York City ballot in 2024, five passed on Tuesday. “It was always a campaign that we knew time was not on our side for, because this was a rushed process from the mayor in the first place,” said Sisitzky.

“The only ballot proposal to pass ‘overwhelmingly’ [in NYC] was the statewide anti-discrimination proposal, Prop 1,” wrote No Power Grab NYC, a grassroots coalition of civil rights groups and elected officials opposed to Proposals 2 through 6, in a statement. According to the Board of Elections, around 77 percent of New York City voters approved of the Equal Rights Amendment.

While more than 20 states across the country have equality enshrined in their state Constitution, the New York ERA is the most inclusive in the country by explicitly protecting reproductive rights and making discrimination on the basis of sex, gender identity, religion, ethnic background, and pregnancy status unconstitutional. Proposal 1 was also the only ballot initiative unrelated to the City Charter and not introduced by Mayor Adams, who was indicted in a federal corruption investigation in September.

“This team overcame a last-minute, multimillion-dollar smear campaign from out-of-state, anti-abortion billionaires bent on scaring and dividing voters,” said Sasha Ahuja, the campaign director for New Yorkers for Equal Rights, a coalition of over 500 organizations rallying support for Proposal 1. Volunteers knocked on more 250,000 doors and made over a million calls to voters to support Prop 1, according to Ahuja. Proposal 1 passed with almost 62 percent, garnering over 4 million votes. “In every corner of the state, voters showed up at the polls to protect their rights, and the rights of generations of New Yorkers to come.”

The New York Republican Party and the Coalition to Protect Kids NY argued against Prop 1, saying it would restrict parental rights in the state. “The ERA could also mandate that schools allow biological males to compete in girls’ sports,” wrote the Coalition to Protect Kids NY.

“We knew this would be the opposition’s playbook and that a successful campaign would require a comprehensive plan to respond to their fear-mongering attacks,” Ahuja said. “That’s why, over 16 months ago, we built out a team of top-tier staff and seasoned organizers to lead Prop 1 to victory. We crafted a comprehensive media strategy to respond to whatever lies the opposition decided to run with.”

The successful proposals pushed by Mayor Eric Adams passed by the narrowest margins of any NYC ballot proposal in at least 15 years.

Nonetheless, the approved measures will take effect as soon as the election is certified, which Emma Johnson, communications director for council member Keith Powers, expects to be “sometime in early December.”