New York City primary day ended Tuesday with upsets and close calls for longstanding Brooklyn council members, while some managed to hold their positions — despite criticism.
In one major upset, East New York Councilmember Charles Barron, whose district has been held by him or his wife, Inez Barron, for the last two decades, looks likely to lose District 42. Long-term council member for District 41 Darlene Mealy managed to hold onto her position despite three Democratic challengers and accusations of absenteeism. Meanwhile, first-time candidate Susan Zhuang was the winner in Brooklyn's new 43rd District.
It was a long, hot day of last-minute campaigning for many Brooklyn politicians vying in the primary election, in which candidates from each political party run against each other for the opportunity to be selected as their party’s nominee in the general election, scheduled for Nov. 7.
In Ocean Hill, volunteers with megaphones faced off outside a senior center on behalf of District 41 incumbent Mealy and challenger Isis McIntosh Green. In Bushwick and Williamsburg, Democratic opponents Jennifer Gutiérrez and Paperboy Love Prince were spotted hitting multiple similar locations to mobilize their voters in District 34.
Not every district had a contested election — some of the current council members ran unopposed and didn't face a challenger. But for seven districts in Brooklyn, primary day was a day of competition, with candidates working diligently to make sure registered Democrats and Republicans got out to cast their votes.
Registered Democrat Magnal Isaac, 77, made sure to get down to her local senior center in Ocean Hill to cast her ballot. However, she told BK Reader she felt disconnected from this election's candidates.
"What do they really do? They're not out here, you can't get through to them," she said. "It's not like it used to be."
Isaac said she voted for Mealy, but only out of name recognition.
"People were out at the end of the street yelling her name," Isaac said. Overall, voting across the city was sluggish, with less than 6% of 2.8 million eligible voters casting an in-person ballot.
This year's primary held new challenges and opportunities for local politicians, thanks to last year’s redistricting process. Every 10 years, political district lines are redrawn to reflect the most recent census data. For Brooklyn, this meant an almost entirely new District 43, changing from covering Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights to now including sections of Sunset Park, Borough Park, Bensonhurst and Bath Beach, for a predominantly Asian voter base. It also meant a very different District 47, which now includes Bay Ridge, portions of the southern Brooklyn waterfront and Gravesend.
Read on for Brooklyn's primary election results, which will be updated as BK Reader gets them, with reactions from local candidates.
All election results below are reported from the New York City Board of Elections website results, which were last counted at 12:25am on Wednesday, June 28.
These numbers are the unofficial election night returns, which include all ballots cast during the early voting period, a bulk of the absentee ballots received before primary day, along with the votes cast on machines during today’s election. Where the margins are wide enough, some candidates have already claimed victory. Absentee ballots will still be counted until July 5, according to the BOE.
City Council Results
District 34:
Councilmember Jennifer Gutiérrez has been re-elected to the New York City Council in District 34 after winning 81% of the vote in her race against Democratic opponent Paperboy Love Prince, with 98.25% of scanners tallied. The district does not have a Republican primary.
"I don't take this position for granted, and our team did the work to get out the vote and make sure people turned out for this election," she said in a statement, while thanking her volunteers and those who voted for her, and indicating her intention to keep fighting for Universal Child Care, affordable housing, investing in social safety nets and more.
"I am honored you have chosen me again to fight alongside you all, to be your champion for the solutions that are decades in the making. Our work is only just beginning," Gutiérrez said.
In a statement posted to Instagram Wednesday morning, Prince — who campaigned fiercely throughout primary day — thanked their supporters and said they would be announcing the next office they intend to run for soon.
"We didn't get the results we wanted. But we will keep fighting for justice," Prince said.
District 41:
Councilmember Darlene Mealy will hold on to her position in District 41 for a fifth term after decisively beating out Democratic challengers Isis McIntosh Green, Reginald Bowman and Joyce Shearin on primary day. The win — secured with more than 61% of the vote — was hard fought, after critics accused Mealy of being an absent leader for her district, with the second-worst attendance record of any city council member this year. Challenger Green received 30% of the vote, and 98.04% of scanners were tallied.
The district includes Brownsville and parts of Weeksville and Bed-Stuy. The district does not have a Republican primary.
District 42:
One of the few incumbents who looked to be ousted due to Tuesday's primary race was District 42 Councilmember Charles Barron, a Democrat, whose district has been held by him or his wife, Inez Barron, for the last two decades. City Council District 42 in Brooklyn covers much of East New York, as well as Starrett City and parts of East Flatbush.
Democrat Chris Banks, an anti-poverty activist, led Barron 51%-43% with 99% of scanners reported as of midnight Tuesday, according to the city Board of Elections. There were no Republicans on the ballot.
District 43:
Susan Zhuang, a first-time candidate, public school parent, and chief of staff to Assemblymember Bill Colton won the highly-contested Democratic primary for the new 43rd Council District in Brooklyn, beating out Wai Yee Chan, a nonprofit executive, and Stanley Ng, a retired computer programmer.
“As a first-generation immigrant, working mom, and public servant, I understand and have been working on the issues Southern Brooklyn residents care most about — keeping our communities safe with pro-police policies, ensuring we have the best schools, creating affordable housing, and protecting our quality of life," she said in a statement late Tuesday, after winning more than 59% of the vote.
"Tonight, we will celebrate, but tomorrow we will get back to work in our effort to win in November. I am truly humbled by tonight’s result."
Ying Tan, a community activist, looked likely to beat out Vito LaBella, a retired lieutenant with the NYPD, in the Republican primary, with more than 51% of the vote.
District 44:
Incumbent Councilmember Kalman Yeger looked likely to beat out challenger Heshy Tischler in the Republican primary for Brooklyn's 44th District, which includes Borough Park, Midwood, Ocean Parkway and parts of Gravesend. As of midnight Tuesday, with 99% of scanners reported, Yeger held 51% of the vote to Tischler's 48%. However, Tischler cautioned his supporters to be patient and wait for absentee votes to be counted.
"I will be the winner of the Republican primary when it's all said and done," he said in a video statement sent to BK Reader.
Yeger is a Democrat who faced off in the Republican primary election. But, in November, he will run on the Democratic ticket.
District 47:
Incumbent Councilmember Ari Kagan decisively won the Republican primary in District 47, representing Bensonhurst, Coney Island, Gravesend and Sea Gate. Kagan secured the primary with more than 75% of the vote as of early Wednesday morning, with Kagan, a former journalist, switched his political affiliation from Democrat to Republican in 2022 while in office.
Kagan beat out challenges from Republicans Anna Belfiore-Delfaus and Avery Pereira.
The district has an uncontested Democratic primary and will likely have a competitive general election race in November with Kagan facing off against Democrat Justin Brannan, after Brannan was drawn out of his current district, District 43.
District 48:
District 48 Councilmember Inna Vernikov secured the Republican primary with 71% of the vote as of early Wednesday morning, beating out Igor Kazatsker, with 96.04% of the scanners tallied. The district includes Homecrest, Sheepshead Bay, Brighton Beach and Manhattan Beach.
The Republican incumbent will likely face a competitive challenge from Democrat Amber Adler in the general election in November.
