Jalen Brunson, 'Jackson Dart' and Lou Gehrig among athletes to receive write-in votes in NYC mayor election

The New York City mayoral election was settled a month ago, with Zohran Mamdani scoring a win over Andrew Cuomo to replace Eric Adams in City Hall. What was not settled was the write-in votes.

The full list of the NYC electorate's off-menu choices was released Tuesday, and more than a few people opted to cast their vote for a wide array of sports figures. Some were misspelled. Two were dead. One of them hadn't played or worked for a New York team since 1957.

Overall, the list is a full cross-section of where New York, and maybe even America, finds itself as a society. Instead of Mamdani or Cuomo, voters cast votes for Bad Bunny, Harriet Tubman, Lin Manuel Miranda, Bart Simpson, Bette Midler, Jesus Christ and plenty of politicians who definitely were not running for mayor.

It's hard to say what possesses a person to vote for New York Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson or former New York Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau. We have even more questions for the people who voted for Hank Aaron (who died in 2021) or Lou Gehrig (who died in 1941).

Brooklyn native Sandy Koufax, who remains alive and attending World Series games at 89, got a vote after leaving the city with the Dodgers in the 1950s. Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart got two votes, or three if you count the vote for "Jackson Dart." So did his teammate, running back Cam Skattebo, and New York Yankees playoff hero Cam Schlittler.

MLB commissioner Rob Manfred also got a vote, as did three NFL players who have been division rivals for New York teams their entire career: New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye and Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts. And, of course, Tom Brady.

On the media side, ESPN's Stephen A. Smith got two votes while pondering a political career. There were votes for Mark Davis and Martin Smith, but there's no way to know if the votes were meant for the Las Vegas Raiders owner or ESPN college football reporter.

In terms of total volume, New York Knicks star Jalen Brunson took the win with 27 votes, well ahead of second place, Yankees slugger Aaron Judge's 11. If you count the votes for "Jaylen Brunson" and "Jalen Bronson," he tied for the 12th-most votes among all write-in candidates with Hillary Clinton.

Here's the full list of every person involved in professional sports we could find on the list of write-ins:

• Jets head coach Aaron Glenn, 1

• Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge, 11

• Yankees pitcher Cam Schlittler, 1

• Giants running back Cam Skattebo, 1

• Former Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony, 1

• Yankees Hall of Famer Derek Jeter, 1

• Patriots quarterback Drake Maye, 1

• Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson, 1

• Braves Hall of Famer Hank Aaron, 1

• Knicks guard Jalen Brunson, 27

  • Jalen Bronson, 1

  • Jaylen Brunson, 1

• Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts, 1

• Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart, 2

  • Jackson Dart, 1

• Knicks guard Josh Hart, 1

• Lakers forward LeBron James, 1

• Knicks president Leon Rose, 1

• Yankees Hall of Famer Lou Gehrig, 1

• Mets first baseman Pete Alonso, 3

• MLB commissioner Rob Manfred, 1

• Dodgers Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax, 1

• Eagles running back "Saquan" Barkley, 1

• ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith, 2

• Patriots Hall of Famer Tom Brady, 1

• Former Knicks head coach Tom/Thomas Thibodeau, 2

• Knicks Hall of Famer Walt Frazier, 1