Bronx incumbent Gustavo Rivera and DSA-endorsed Kristen Gonzalez both seemed likely to prevail in their State Senate races, despite being targeted by SuperPACs that spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to undermine the progressive candidates, stuffing mailboxes with flyers and running digital ads disparaging them or boosting their opponents.
By 6 p.m. Tuesday, 237,888 New York City residents had voted in the unusual August primary, where some neighborhoods were home to heated State Senate and Congressional races while others had no candidates on the ballot at all. Polls close at 9 p.m.
The legal battle over redistricting this year resulted in two primaries for New York, including Tuesday’s rare August contests for State Senate and Congress. City Limits spoke to city residents about what they’re looking out for this second summer Election Day—or if they’re looking at all.
The BronxTalk debate between 33rd District candidates State Sen. Gustavo Rivera and party-backed attorney Miguelina Camilo touched on a range of issues, from bail reform to what “progressive” really means to them.
The three Democratic candidates in the 34th Senate District find common ground in opposing a proposed supportive housing site for critically ill former Rikers detainees on the campus of Jacobi Hospital, and a 314-unit apartment complex planned for vacant lots along the Bruckner Expressway.
BronxNet will air debates between Democratic candidates in the newly redrawn District 33, where incumbent Gustavo Rivera is facing party-backed attorney Miguelina Camilo, and in District 34, where Christian Amato and John Perez are up against Assemblywoman Nathalia Fernandez for the East Bronx seat left open by Alessandra Biaggi.
In New York City, 446,432 Democrats and 50,337 Republican cast ballots for governor on Tuesday—a sleepy election day during a redistricting year that’ll ask voters to return to the polls in August for a second primary.
Spanish translators were missing at two Queens polling places that City Limits visited Tuesday morning, while interpreters for other languages said they had interacted with very few voters.
“By seeking credible data and nurturing a values-based conversation that better elevates justice, state leaders can both serve public safety interests and avoid an unjust burden on individuals and communities.”
Tuesday marked the first of this year’s primary elections in New York. Some voters told City Limits they were motivated to show up by the recent, controversial U.S Supreme Court decisions that overturned the constitutional right to an abortion as well as New York’s concealed-carry gun law.
City Limits uses investigative journalism through the prism of New York City to identify urban problems, examine their causes, explore solutions, and equip communities to take action.
Founded in 1976 in the midst of New York’s fiscal crisis, City Limits exists to inform democracy and equip citizens to create a more just city. The organization is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit funded by foundation support, ad sponsorship and donations from readers.
Support local, investigative journalism that has informed and empowered New Yorkers for 45 years.
Support local, investigative journalism that has informed and empowered New Yorkers for 45 years.
