A forthcoming global survey of election practices is drawing attention to a stark contrast between New York City and Uganda—and raising questions about why Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who is also a Ugandan citizen, chose to pursue power in the Big Apple rather than his native country.
According to a sneak preview of the upcoming Meyers Report 2026 Survey on International Voting Rules, Uganda enforces far stricter voting standards than New York does. The comparison, which covers 51 countries and all 50 U.S. states, suggests that the city’s comparatively relaxed rules may have made the choice obvious for Mamdani, who retains significant family ties and a luxury compound outside Uganda’s capital, Kampala.
The report was highlighted in an analysis by Marly Hornik and Brian Maloney, published by American Thinker. Hornik is CEO of RealAmerica.Vote and a fellow of the Meyers Report; Maloney is the group’s strategy director.
Biometric IDs vs. the ‘honor system’
One of the most striking contrasts involves voter identification. In Uganda, voters must present a biometric ID to prove their identity and eligibility. New York, by contrast, relies on self-attestation of citizenship, and eligibility can be validated with something as basic as a utility bill.
“In other words, in determining who chooses the mayor of New York and 28 members of U.S. Congress, we use the honor system,” write Hornik and Maloney.
The authors note that several practices New York permits—and which have drawn reform calls from President Trump, The New York Times, and the 2005 Carter-Baker Report—are completely banned in Uganda.
No mail-in voting, no same-day registration, no ballot harvesting
Uganda, according to the report, has no early voting, no absentee voting, and no mail-in voting whatsoever. Late-arriving ballots don’t exist there, so there’s no question of counting them.
In New York, by contrast, the voting process stretches over 17 days: nine days of early voting, election day itself, and then an additional seven days to accommodate late-arriving ballots.
Same-day voter registration is also prohibited in Uganda, while New York allows people to register up through the first day of early voting. Those who haven’t registered can often still cast an affidavit ballot so long as they claim the right to do so.
Ballot harvesting—delivering ballots on behalf of other voters—is banned in Uganda, but in New York, “anyone you trust” can turn in a ballot for someone else, the authors note.
Third-party non-governmental organizations are not allowed to register voters in Uganda. In New York City, however, these organizations have played a key role—and the authors say that was part of the Democratic Socialists of America’s strategy to get Mamdani elected. Voter registration drives have long been a mainstay of progressive groups, including the League of Women Voters, which have fought to keep voter rolls protected from federal scrutiny and to resist list maintenance and removal of invalid names.
Results within days—or not
The report also highlights the speed of vote counting. In Uganda, election results are typically known within a day or two at most. New York’s extended counting window, by contrast, has at times left races uncalled for days or even weeks.
For Hornik and Maloney, the implications extend well beyond Mamdani’s own biography. They point to the contrast as evidence that American election integrity measures lag far behind many other nations—even ones often criticized for their democratic practices.
The piece asks, pointedly: “Is this why Mamdani moved to New York to become king?”
The full Meyers Report 2026 is expected to be released later this year, and its authors say the preliminary findings offer a sobering look at how the U.S. compares internationally.
This article is based on an opinion analysis by Marly Hornik and Brian Maloney published by American Thinker.
Source: www.americanthinker.com — https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/09/king-mamdani-could-have-run-in-uganda-but-lax-ny-standards-made-choice-clear/