Socialist beats sociopath to win NYC mayoral democrat primary

NY Post 

Dark-horse socialist candidate Zohran Mamdani staged a stunning upset Tuesday night by knocking off former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the Democratic mayoral primary.

“Tonight we made history,” Mamdani told supporters at his victory party after midnight. “In the words of Nelson Mandela, ‘It always seems impossible until it is done.’ My friends, we have done it. I will be your Democratic nominee for the mayor of New York City.”

The 33-year-old Queens assemblyman defied polls and expectations as he notched a likely insurmountable 7-point lead over Cuomo, the three-term governor who hoped to make a political comeback after resigning in disgrace in 2021.

“Tonight is his night. He deserved it, he won,” a seemingly shell-shocked Cuomo, 67, said as he conceded to Mamdani.

The first round of the ranked-choice voting contest had Mamdani ahead with 43.51% of votes, followed by Cuomo’s 36.42% and city Comptroller Brad Lander’s 11.31%, Board of Elections unofficial results show. Mamdani carried roughly 432,000 votes to Cuomo’s 362,000, the results show.

 

The state lawmaker didn’t crack 50% of votes, so the contest will still be decided July 1 once the other rounds of ranked-choice votes are calculated.

But the first-round totals still put the avowed democratic socialist within sight of becoming New York City’s next mayor.

Cuomo conceded he lost the primary as he addressed his campaign’s watch party — and signaled he may not run in the November general election on an independent line, as widely assumed.

“Tonight was not our night,” Cuomo said, as he praised Mamdani’s grassroots campaign, which mobilized young, far-left voters with catchy campaign promises and slogans focusing on affordability.

“It’s affordability, stupid,” quipped longtime New York City political operative Kevin McCabe, in a reference to Bill Clinton, about the issue that decided the race.

A win by Mamdani is bound to have sweeping impacts beyond the Big Apple and signal the rising power of the Democrats’ progressive wing, especially over aging party stalwarts such as Cuomo.

His near-insurmountable lead hints he could be replicating what his backer and fellow progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez did in 2018, as she ran as a charismatic outsider to topple entrenched Democrat Joe Crowley — only he did it across the whole city, a political veteran told The Post.

Cuomo could barely be seen actually on the campaign trail as he relied on his name recognition, backing of powerful unions and attacks against Mamdani’s thin legislative record and ample history of criticizing Israel.

The scandal-scarred ex-governor entered the race in March as the clear frontrunner, but saw his polling lead steadily chipped away by Mamdani, who waged a social media-friendly campaign heavy on proposed freebies — which he plans to pay for by hiking taxes on billionaires and businesses.

“He should’ve learned a lesson from the terrible, Rose Garden race that Joe Crowley ran against AOC. Like Crowley, Cuomo was arrogant and grossly underestimated his opponent,” said Democratic operative Ken Frydman.

We like Marty

 

 Bronx Times

 

U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez officially faces a challenger in the upcoming Democratic primary. 

Marty Dolan, 66, has received notice from the NYC Board of Elections that he will be on the ballot for the June primary against Ocasio-Cortez, who will face a primary challenger for the first time since 2020.

Dolan, who is a retired Wall Street insurance executive, needed 1,250 signatures from registered Democrats who live in the district in order to get on the ballot — and he said he got 7,300. The Bronx Times reached out to the Board of Elections for confirmation of these numbers and is awaiting a response.

Dolan said he’s been hitting the streets talking to prospective voters throughout District 14, which covers neighborhoods in the east Bronx and northern Queens. Stopping at grocery stores, churches and parks, he said he has seen a lot of enthusiasm for his candidacy — and some even hugged him and said, “I love you.” 

“The feedback continues to be really positive,” he said. 

Dolan, who was living outside the district when he last spoke with the Bronx Times, said he has now found a place to live in the Bronx at “the bottom of White Plains Road,” and he’s also looking for a place in Queens — which he sees as a way of meeting people where they are in a large, highly varied district. 

Fundraising has picked up recently, he said. Records from the Federal Election Commission showed that for the period ending March 31, the campaign had $20,893 cash on hand after expenditures, factoring in $17,075 in individual contributions and Dolan’s loan of $225,000 to his own campaign.

He takes pride in running a simple, relatively low-budget campaign. “What you need to do is be on the ground, shaking hands with people, sitting outside the supermarket and really making yourself available to the voters.” 

As for his opponent, “She’s on the GQ [magazine] cover. She’s on the Late Show. She’s not in the supermarket,” he said. 

Ocasio-Cortez’s office declined to comment for this story but is in the process of arranging an interview with the Bronx Times.

Dolan wants his campaign, and his tenure in Congress should he win, to maintain a predictable, easy-to-find presence that stays laser-focused on the district — not on charged political and international issues such as the War in Gaza, which he called “not a central issue for people in the district.”

In the heavily Democratic 14th District, Dolan emphasized the importance of educating people about the June 25 primary. More voters should have their say when more options are on the table, he said.

“There’s a lot of anxiety about the current representative, and we’re offering a choice,” said Dolan.

He said a campaign van — “Rollin’ With Dolan” — is coming soon, which will help him cover more ground as he campaigns as an unknown against one of the world’s most recognizable political figures. 

But Dolan said he has been well-received in the district by those dissatisfied with the current state of progressive politics. Some have “profound reactions” to him, he said, and it’s often younger people with low to moderate incomes who respond most positively. 

“The younger voters with families and houses are thrilled to see us,” said Dolan.

While canvassing in the district, Dolan said he has met many people who are “barely getting by” and cannot focus much on broad issues. They are mostly concerned with how those issues trickle down to their neighborhoods — for instance, how immigration in the United States affects the local economy. 

Many constituents view Ocasio-Cortez as an “egomaniac,” Dolan said. “Her focus is on becoming a national franchise,” and she has succeeded while ignoring the reality of what constituents are concerned about, he argues. 

 If he wins — or as Dolan said, “when we’re in Congress” — he plans to have a mobile office instead of a brick-and-mortar one and travel around the district to make himself accessible. And “we’re gonna spend 99% of our money in the district,” he said.

Tony the Tiger

NY Post 

Former Queens Democratic Councilman Tony Avella and Republican Kristy Marmorato in The Bronx won their primary ranked choice races albeit by very tight margins according to the New York City Board of Elections on Wednesday.

In the Democratic primary in northeast Queens’ 19th Council District, Avella won by just 123 votes — 2,865 votes or  51.1% to 2,742 votes or 49.9% for Christopher Bae.

Avella will have a rematch against Republican Councilwoman Vicki Paladino, who defeated him two years ago. He also served in the state Senate.

Katz remains DA

QNS 

Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz declared victory in her primary race against two Democratic challengers Tuesday night.

Katz held a convincing lead over retired Judge George Grasso and public defender Devian Daniels, having secured nearly 71% of the vote with 96% precincts reporting as of 11 p.m. on June 27.

Grasso and Daniels each have approximately 14% of the vote,with Grasso ahead by only 187 votes as of 11 p.m.

Katz delivered her victory speech at the Queens Boulevard barbecue joint Queens Bully after she amassed an avalanche of endorsements from law enforcement unions and most major labor organizations in the city, nearly all of the borough’s Democratic elected officials, Mayor Eric Adams and, most recently, Gov. Kathy Hochul, who joined Katz during her victory party at Queens Bully.

Throughout her campaign, Katz hammered home the point that she provided a steady hand running the Queens DA’s office through turbulent times, having been sworn in just months ahead of the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown.

“I’m so proud of the work my office has done through unprecedented challenges,” Katz said. “In the third month of my administration, the entire world shut down and my office didn’t skip a beat. We continued going after every gang member, every gun prosecution and everything that came through our office was taken care of no matter what the obstacles we were facing.”

She said she worked to keep Queens families safe by leading the effort to take illegal weapons and ghost guns off the streets and held human traffickers and domestic abusers accountable. At the same time, she has launched Queens’ first-ever Conviction Integrity Unit to ensure justice for those wrongfully convicted.

Voter exhaustion and apathy and poll site chaos impacts primary results

Queens Eagle

A muggy day in late August was no match for the relatively small number of Queens residents who cast their ballots for a handful of State Senate and Congressional primary races taking place throughout the borough Tuesday. 

It was the second primary election to be held in the city this summer, after the Court of Appeals ruled that the state’s Senate and Congressional electoral maps ran afoul of the state’s constitution. To give the court-appointed “special master” enough time to draw the new redistricting lines, the Board of Elections split the primaries into a June and August date. 

While June’s turnout was relatively low, Tuesday’s turnout in the bifurcated primary appeared to be even lower in the few areas in Queens where there were contested races on the ballot.

And while the borough was without many open races or challenges to incumbents on Tuesday, the borough wasn’t completely void of a real political contest. One of the most hotly contested races is for Senate District 59, a newly created district that covers parts of Long Island City, Astoria, Greenpoint, Williamsburg, Tudor City, Kips Bay and Stuyvesant Town. The race features a young progressive candidate backed by the Democratic Socialists of America in Kristen Gonzalez, former City Councilmember and Queens County Democratic Party-backed Elizabeth Crowley and Mike Corbett, a former staffer to former Councilmember Costa Constantinides. 

But turnout in the Queens portion of the district appeared to be lagging early Tuesday, which could potentially serve as an advantage for Gonzalez.

Around 25 voters had cast their ballot at P.S. 166 in Astoria by 8 a.m., on Tuesday. The site saw well over double that number in June by that time, a poll worker told the Eagle. Turnout at Information Technology High School in Long Island City hit 46 voters by 9:45 a.m., also a decline from the June turnout. 

The Ravenswood Community Center, which serves as the primary polling site for residents of NYCHA’s Ravenswood Houses, had logged less than 10 voters by 9 a.m. Poll workers there said it wasn’t just the unusual August primary that was causing issues. 

Poll workers arrived at the site to find that the electronic tablets used to check voters in hadn’t been prepared the night before, as they normally are. At least five voters arrived to the site and were asked to return later. A poll worker told the Eagle that one voter left upset, another voted via affidavit ballot and the others had yet to return. 

“They’re working now, we didn’t turn the voters away and we want them to come [back],” the poll worker said. 

Ricardo Aca, a member of nonprofit Make the Road New York, was canvassing for votes outside of the Ravenswood site on behalf of Gonzalez. 

Aca said that he was particularly concerned that the poll site issues were happening in an area home to a majority of Black and brown residents. 

“I’m definitely disappointed that it's happening in a district that is majority Black voters,” Aca said. “We already know a lot of voters do not get their information about the election, so then those that do get to vote and practice the right to vote then get turned away because the machines are down – it’s inexcusable.”

A Board of Elections spokesperson said: “We had some technical issues with the poll pads at that site this morning. Some voters opted to return later, but affidavits were always available to voters.”

Issues also arose at P.S. 55 in Richmond Hill, where several voters were asked to vote via affidavit because of a mix up surrounding absentee ballots. 

Voters who request absentee ballots are not allowed to vote at a polling station in-person, as per a recent rule change from the Board of Elections. 

In Marisa Osorio’s case, however, that request for an absentee ballot – though the ballot itself did arrive – had never been made. 

“I got it in the mail, and I was just like, ‘Why am I getting an absentee ballot?’” Osorio said. “I ripped it up because I figured I could just go vote in person.”

But when she arrived at the school, she was asked to vote by affidavit, something several others in the same situation were asked to do, as well, she said.  

“It was just annoying,” she added.

In addition to malfunctioning machines, some voters told the Eagle that the split primary and redistricting had left them confused. While most said that they were informed – some, at the last minute – of the election and any potential changes to their district and polling sites, others felt unsure. 

“I can’t follow with all the changes…they make it more complicated every year,” one voter who declined to give his name told the Eagle as he stormed out of the polling site at P.S. 166, spitting in front of the building as he left. 

The Queens resident had been told that he had been redistricted and needed to go to a different polling place than the one he had been voting at for years.  

“I’m not going there,” he said. 

Young upper class socialist wins Senate primary

 

 

Queens Eagle

New York City closed the book on its 2022 primary season when polls closed in State Senate and Congressional races on the ballot Tuesday evening.

There were only four contested races in Queens – two in the State Senate and two Congressional races. 

Early and unofficial results show that Queens’ most hotly contested race – the race to choose a Democratic nominee for its newest State Senate Seat – has followed in the trend that was set by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in 2018 when she upset Queens County Democratic Party Leader Joe Crowley.

In the State Senate District 59 race between Democratic Socialists of America-backed Kristen Gonzalez, former City Councilmember Elizabeth Crowley and Mike Corbett, a former staffer to City Councilmember Costa Constantinides, Gonzalez was on top by around 6,000 votes – holding around 59 percent of the vote – with 91 percent of scanners reported. 

Crowley, who had the backing of the Queens County Democratic Party and whose fundraising numbers far exceeded those of any other candidates in the race, held around 32 percent of the vote. 

There remain around 2,220 absentee ballots from Queens voters in the district left to be counted, according to the Board of Elections, but they won’t do much to help Crowley.  

Crowley conceded to Gonzalez shortly after 10 p.m., marking her fourth consecutive losing election. 

“We put everything into this campaign that we could and sadly tonight have come up short,” Crowley said in a statement. “I can’t thank my supporters, volunteers, and my team enough for their tireless efforts. I congratulated Kristen on her win and wish her all the best.”

Should Gonzalez win in November, a group of voters in Astoria will be represented by DSA-backed officials in every legislature except the U.S. Senate. The rise to power for the DSA in the area that has taken less than five years. Astoria voters helped propel Ocasio-Cortez to office in 2018, elected Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani in 2020 and City Councilmember Tiffany Cabán in 2021. 

“We have this opportunity to set an example for the rest of the city, the rest of the state and the rest of the country,” Gonzalez told the Eagle Tuesday afternoon before the results began to come in. “It’s not only about creating Democratic Socialists at every level of government, but those Democratic Socialists are accountable to the larger community, and for the first time working class people will have a voice at every single level.”

Homophobic vulgarian accuses incumbent council member of preemptively colluding with the GOP

  

Gothamist

Juan Ardila, a challenge in the Democratic primary race for the 30th Council District seat in Queens, is claiming that incumbent Robert Holden plans to pull the same trick he used to win in 2017: running on the Republican line as a Democrat for the November election, thanks to an old state law in the books.

Ardila says that the current Democratic council member will once again be placed on the Republican line for a second term should he lose the June 22nd primary. He claims that the Republicans in the district are coalescing around Holden because he's the best shot in representing their interests.

“There's no other Republican that has nearly enough name recognition or the support that he has," Ardila said of Holden.

While it might seem implausible for a longtime Democrat to run on the GOP line, this is actually how Holden won his seat back in 2017. That year, Holden lost the Democratic primary to then-incumbent Council Member Elizabeth Crowley, but then ran as a Republican during the November general election, where he defeated Crowley for the Council seat by 137 votes. Holden, at the time, said he’d “be stupid not to” get on the Republican line to win.

Ardila’s team believes Holden will pull the same stunt through the Wilson-Pakula Law. The obscure state provision allows a party to place a non-party member on the ballot so long as they file the correct paperwork. In the case for the 30th Council District, the Queens Republican Party will play that card and place Holden on their line, Ardila contends.

 Holden and Ardila are the only ones on the Democratic primary ticket. And their line of endorsements underscores their brand of politics. Ardila, a progressive Democrat, has been endorsed by 1199 SEIU, and state senators Jessica Ramos and Michael Gianaris. Holden has received backing from a handful of Democratic legislators, he’s also garnered support from police unions, including the Police Benevolent Association. The PBA made its politics known last year when the group endorsed Trump for his failed re-election bid.

Joann Ariola—the head of the Queens Republican Party, who Holden backed during her unsuccessful bid for Queens borough president—confirmed Spataro is running as a Republican. “He is our candidate," she said, "so I'm not quite sure what Mr. Ardila is talking about."

"I think that Mr. Ardila should pay more attention to his own primary, rather than what the Republicans are doing,” Ariola said. “He's running against a very popular Councilman, who I think can win this seat on the Democratic line outright. [He] wouldn’t need a Republican safety net."

Kevin Ryan, a campaign spokesman, denied such collusion would take place.

“There’s no need for the Councilman, a lifelong Democrat, to consider a contingency plan for losing a primary that he’s going to win,” Ryan said. “He’s been a Democrat twice as long as his challenger has been alive.”

él no es bueno

 

Update:

 

Gothamist is running protection for Ardila by censoring comments criticizing him and his high profile supporters.

 

Their disqus comment section is now closed.

 

What's interesting about how they did this is that disqus usually indicates why and how the comment was deleted, a good example is how Gersh Kuntzman deleted all my comments on Streetsblog weeks ago. Gothamist found a way to erase them entirely

 

 

 

 What a disgrace.