The city is not just choosing a new mayor in November. This fall, New York voters must also decide on five proposed changes to the state constitution.

Five ballot proposals are up for a vote in the general election on Nov. 2. They include questions on the future of political representation in Albany, environmental protections, easier voter registration and absentee balloting, and how New York’s civil courts function.The full text of the five proposals are listed on the Board of Elections website and at Ballotpedia, the nonprofit political encyclopedia. But voters who aren’t political mavens may need a bit of context:

Oct, 21, 2021 By Christian Murray

Two Queens residents who worked at a Forest Hills community center face up to seven years in prison for allegedly stealing thousands of dollars intended for a summer youth employment program.

Oct. 20, 2021 By Allie Griffin

All city workers must get vaccinated for COVID-19 or face unpaid leave under a new mandate Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Wednesday.

Oct. 19, 2021 By Max Parrott

More than a year after communities of color in Queens bore some of the most deadly impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, the New York City Board of Health has passed a resolution that declares racism a public health crisis.

Oct. 19, 2021 By Allie Griffin

A group of Auburndale residents, business owners and local politicians are calling on the city to shut down a local bar they say has made their lives a living hell for the past eight months.

Oct. 19, 2021 Staff Report

The police are looking for a man who fired off a gun outside Queens Criminal Court in Kew Gardens last week.

Oct. 18, 2021 By Allie Griffin

A couple who allegedly stored a stockpile of gun-making equipment in the Rosedale home they shared with their 10-year-old daughter was charged with criminal sale of a weapon and other charges Friday.

Oct. 18, 2021 By Michael Dorgan

A 22-year-old woman is dead after the car she was riding in smashed into another vehicle near Forest Park Sunday.

Oct. 15, 2021 By Christian Murray

Two Democratic candidates running for city council held a press conference outside an Oakland Gardens elementary school Friday to protest the mayor’s decision to eliminate the Gifted & Talented program.

Oct. 15, 2021 By Allie Griffin

A new state law will soon make it illegal to threaten to report someone to ICE as a form of blackmail.

Oct. 14, 2021 By Allie Griffin

Residential sales prices across Queens grew at the highest rate among the five boroughs over the past year, according to a new report.

Oct. 15, 2021 By Michael Dorgan

A city clean-up initiative that launched in April has removed 600,000 bags of trash from New York streets, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Thursday.

Oct. 14, 2021 By Max Parrott

Several Queens legislators have called on a city panel tasked with overseeing public art and architecture to vote to remove a statue of Thomas Jefferson in the City Council chambers as a form of reckoning with his legacy as a slaveholder.

Oct. 14, 2021 By Michael Dorgan

A virtual walk celebrating religious freedom and the founding of Flushing will take place Sunday.

Oct. 14, 2021 By Allie Griffin

Six million New York City residents have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Thursday.

Oct. 13, 2021 By Allie Griffin

Several new businesses have recently opened — or are set to open — inside a Flushing mega-development as the city bounces back from the pandemic.

Oct. 13, 2021 Staff Report

Governor Kathy Hochul announced a major milestone last week in the Kew Gardens Interchange Phase 4 project in Queens.

Oct. 13, 2021 By Michael Dorgan

A Flushing couple has been accused of duping hundreds of Chinese nationals out of millions of dollars, by luring them into buying into two failed development projects in Queens — with the promise that their investments would help secure them residency in the United States.

Oct. 12, 2021 By Allie Griffin

The NYC Board of Elections has increased the number of early voting sites to open in Queens this month ahead of the general election.

Fewer than half of the Open Streets touted by Mayor Bill de Blasio and his Department of Transportation are off limits to motor vehicles as advertised, a new survey finds.

The review from the advocacy group Transportation Alternatives also revealed extreme disparities between boroughs when it comes to the 24 miles of current Open Streets, with just half a mile in The Bronx versus eight miles in Manhattan.

Oct. 12, 2021 By Allie Griffin

A pair of thieves stole a 27-year-old man’s iPhone, AirPods and fanny pack and then made an escape on the subway earlier this month in Rego Park.

Oct. 11, 2021 By Allie Griffin

New York State has closed applications for the Excluded Workers Fund as the $2.1 billion fund is running out.

Oct. 8, 2021 By Allie Griffin

Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Friday that the city will phase out the gifted and talented program at city public schools — sparking criticism from several elected officials in Queens.

Oct. 8, 2021 By Allie Griffin

The New York City Department of Education is facing backlash for not releasing public school enrollment and attendance numbers for the school year thus far.

More than 15,500 New Yorkers have received a total of $107 million to help bury their loved ones who died of COVID-19.

The recipients were able to tap into the funds from the federal COVID-19 Funeral Assistance Program, which recently expanded eligibility after facing pressure from two local legislators. The expansion allowed 1,600 additional people to receive funds.