Election Day is less than three weeks away, and while New York isn’t one of the seven swing states that will likely decide the presidential election, there are still a number of important issues for Empire State residents to vote on.

Here’s New York Focus’s guide to what’s at stake and why it all matters.

As artificial intelligence and other energy-hungry industries have shattered forecasts of US electricity use over the next decade, many states have turned to a familiar solution to beef up their grids: fossil fuel plants.

New York is not one of them. The state’s climate law requires New York to get 70 percent of its electricity from renewables by 2030 and achieve a carbon-free grid by 2040.

But the state is far behind on building new clean energy, and still has to contend with surging electricity demand. That’s leading some to conclude that New York needs to rethink its climate mandates. Could new gas plants be on the table?

A state lawmaker wants New York to give $1,800 to new parents — and has a plan to get the federal government to pick up half the tab.

His proposal comes as bipartisan interest is growing among state lawmakers in a time-tested strategy to tackle the state’s persistently high levels of child poverty and help families afford to remain in-state: send new parents cash.