NEW YORK CITY (WABC) -- New York City's mayoral race is heating up, with early voting already underway ahead of the primary election of Tuesday, June 22.
The significant election, with New Yorkers choosing a new mayor for the first time in eight years, comes as the city emerges from the pandemic, with public safety and crime taking center stage in the campaign. Shootings were up last month by 73% compared to a year ago and transit crimes have nearly doubled.
This election is also notable as New York City for the first time deploys ranked choice voting, which allows voters to rank up to five candidates in order of preference, instead of casting a vote for just one person.
Bill Ritter, on his Up Close news program, has interviewed all eight Democratic candidates: Eric Adams, Shaun Donovan, Kathryn Garcia, Ray McGuire, Dianne Morales, Scott Stringer, Maya Wiley and Andrew Yang.
Take a look at the interviews either below or in our video player above, to see where the candidates stand on the key issues.
RELATED: Watch the first in-person NYC Mayoral Debate
WATCH Up Close on our Connected TV apps for Fire, Roku, Apple TV and Android TV. Click here to learn more.
RELATED: Watch more episodes of Up Close
Up Close with Bill Ritter airs Sunday mornings at 11:00 on Channel 7.