The New York City Voter Assistance Commission has partnered with WNBC and NYC TV to create the Video Voter Guide, non-partisan television programming that will provide access to local political candidates for various offices including the mayor, public advocate, comptroller, borough president and city council.

Today, the VAC and its media partners announced that the programming -- which will air on NBC's digital channel NY Nonstop and NYC TV -- will launch on September 7. New episodes will air on NY Nonstop at noon, with encores at 8 p.m. that day and 9 a.m. the next on NYC TV, which is channel 74. After the primary on September 15, a revised version of the guide will start airing, featuring the candidates in the general election November 3.

The guide will include taped messages from candidates with the length of their statements varying by office. Maps will serve as a backdrop for the candidates so viewers can identify their districts.

More than 180 candidates voluntarily participated in the Video Voter Guide, after first signing affidavits stating that they accepted basic nonpartisan rules. "Candidates who appear on the Video Voter Guide were scheduled to appear on the ballot as of the time of program production," the VAC explained today. "If later events resulted in changes in the final ballot, then candidates who appear on this program may not appear on the ballot. In addition, candidates who chose not to participate in the Video Voter Guide do not appear on the program, but are listed online at www.nyc.gov/videovoter."

"The Video Voter Guide is a unique and valuable public resource, allowing voters to learn more about the candidates seeking to represent them, directly from the candidates themselves," said VAC Executive Director Onida Coward Mayers. "As a VAC flagship program, the guide will provide the public with around-the-clock access to candidate statements that will prepare voters to make informed decisions when they step into the voting booth."

Will you be tuning in?