Despite the prolonged heatwave which could have deterred some voters from showing up to vote for their local representatives on Primary Election Day, NYC Board of Elections reported that at three hours before poll closure on Tuesday, June 25, 20,946 voters had shown up to vote in The Bronx, and 148,355 across the City.

 

The initial unofficial local results are listed below after poll closure for the various primaries in The Bronx on Election Night. Anyone who was in line at 9 p.m. was still allowed vote so these results were updated as we received more information.

 

In the 16th congressional district Democratic primary, which covers parts of the north Bronx and Westchester County, uncumbent Rep. Jamaal Bowman, a former teacher, who first won his seat in 2020, trailed his challenger George Latimer, the Westchester county executive, late on Election Night with 40.14 percent of the vote to Latimer’s 59 percent. Latimer later declared victory in the race, according to a report from the NY Daily News.

 

 

Though Bowman showed a strong early lead in the New York City portion of the district after poll closure, since his district also covers Westchester County, the State Board of Elections results showed Latimer leading the race late on Election Night. The disappointment of his reported loss sinking in, already on Election Night, one constituent proposed voting for Bowman as a write-in candidate in the general election in November, a dangerous move for Democrats wishing to keep the NY-16 seat blue.

1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, the largest healthcare union in New York and nationwide released a statement on the election results on Election Night, writing, “We look forward to working with the winners of today’s primary election who will support healthcare workers fighting for quality care, good jobs, and strong communities.” 1199SEIU members had campaigned with Bowman at a recent Bronx rally, as reported.

 

The statement continued, “Every day, 1199SEIU caregivers work to save lives, deliver babies, and care for the most vulnerable New Yorkers, and now we will be hitting the doors to take back Congress from MAGA extremists. Over the next 133 days, we will mobilize thousands of grassroots volunteers to protect and increase funding for healthcare and long term care, support abortion rights, invest in infrastructure and end special tax breaks for billionaires.”

In the State Committee 81st Assembly District Democratic primary, the Benjamin Franklin Democratic Reform Club’s slate of candidates, Michael Heller as the male state committeeman and Johanna Edmondson, as the female state committeewoman, led with 36.30 and 36.93 percent of the vote respectively. They had received the backing of Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz (A.D. 81) and his son, Councilman Eric Dinowitz (C.D. 11), as part of the “Dinowitz Democratic Team.”

 

According to the Bronx Democratic Party website, two state committee members represent the voters within their assembly district. Their main responsibility is representing their district by attending and voting at their respective political party’s state convention and annual meetings.

“A strong State Committee Member also serves as a liaison between the community, local elected officials, city government, and political candidates,” an extract from the website reads. State committee members are unpaid elected party officials who serve two-year terms and must reside within the district they represent, according to the Bronx Democratic Party.

 

Aaron Stayman of the Unity Democratic Club, who was backed, along with other fellow Unity Democratic Club candidates in other Democratic primaries, by local progressive Democrat, State Sen. Gustavo Rivera (S.D. 33), Democratic State Sen. Robert Jackson (S.D. 31), who represents parts of The Bronx and Manhattan, and local Democratic State Committeewoman for A.D. 81 Morgan Evers, ranked third in the male state committeeman race in A.D. 81. As reported by The Riverdale Press in May, Evers was removed from the ballot due to a typing error related to her address.

In the District Leader 81st Assembly District Democratic primary, the Unity Democratic Club’s candidate, Abigail Martin, a fomer District 11 city council candidate in 2021, led with 32.03 percent of the vote for the female district leader position, while Ben Jackson of the Benjamin Franklin Democratic Reform Club, led with 21.7 percent of the vote for the male district leader position, the latter also part of the Dinowitz Democratic Team.

 

Martin released a statement on June 26, saying, “I would like to thank all of the Unity Democrats across our community, including our candidates, club members, and the incredible volunteers who spent countless hours fighting an uphill battle this entire campaign. Despite being widely outspent by our opponents, we had many important victories and continue to build for the future. I’m proud of our team and the work we’ve done to re-energize the Democratic Party in the northwest Bronx.”

 

On June 28, [Ben] Jackson, Edmondson, and Heller of the Dinowitz Democratic Team released the following statement. “We are honored to win our races and are excited to get to work fighting for the Democratic values of the North Bronx. Despite the result, we know our colleague Emily Hausman will continue to be a dedicated community leader.”

 

They continued, “As races across the city and state made clear, Democrats want strong leaders fighting for common-sense solutions. As all eyes turn to New York ahead of the November General Election, Council Member Eric Dinowitz, Assemblymember Jeffrey Dinowitz and the rest of the Dinowitz Democratic Team will be ready to elect a Democratic majority in the House and re-elect President Biden.”

 

Meanwhile, Jeffrey Dinowitz and Eric Dinowitz said, “Every member of the Dinowitz Democratic Team – District Leader Ben Jackson, State Committee Member Johanna Edmondson, State Committee Member Michael Heller, eight of nine judicial delegates and eight of nine judicial alternates – is ready to be a strong advocate for Bronx Democrats and our shared values. We were proud to support them and be a part of this movement for local change. We’re ready to work with leaders across the Bronx and the rest of the state to re-elect President Biden and flip the House.”

 

 

In the County Committee 009/81 Democratic primary, Ramdat Singh, Nancy Weinstein Valdez, and Deborah Yanover all tied with 27.78 percent of the vote. Three positions are available in this race.

 

In the County Committee 014/81 Democratic primary, Phyllis Roth, Bonnie Geller-Geld, Laura Fieber and E. Doyle-McCarthy were the top four leading candidates. Four positions are available in this race.

In the County Committee 017/81 Democratic primary, Elisha Ignatoff, Susan Goldy, Scott Wasserman, and Meghan Wasserman were the top four candidates leading the race. Four positions are available in this race.

 

In the County Committee 020/81 Democratic primary, Stephanie Halpin, Betsey Knapp, Michael Heller, and Maryann Monte were the top four leading candidates. Four positions are available in this race.

 

In the County Committee 023/81 Democratic primary, Abigail Martin, Martin O’Neill, and Stephen Friedmann were the top three leading candidates. Three positions are available in this race.

In the District Leader for Assembly District 84 Democratic primary, Amanda Septimo led with 38.44 percent of the vote. Two positions are available in this race. Asssembly District 84 is also represented by Assemblywoman Amanda Septimo, and covers much of the Concourse, Mott Haven, Port Morris, and Hunts Point in the South Bronx.

 

In the State Committee for A.D 84 Democratic primary, Sonia Taylor led with 50.56 percent of the vote. Two positions are available in this race.

 

In the District Leader for Assembly District 77 Democratic primary, Evelyn Rivera led with 42.81 percent of the vote. Two positions are available in this race. Assembly District 77 is represented by Assemblyman Landon Dais, who won his seat, as reported, in a special election earlier this year. The district roughly covers some or all of the neighborhoods of Morris Heights, Concourse, and Mt. Hope.

Norwood News spoke to some voters at P.S. 207 in Kingsbridge, located at 3030 Godwin Terrace. Vanessa, who is in her forties and a mother to John, said there weren’t many voters inside the polling station when she went to vote so she didn’t have to wait long, and added that she faced no issues with the voting booths.

 

Asked if she wanted to disclose who she voted for, she said, “I will say there were a lot of names that I didn’t recognize. So, I did vote for people that were part of this community, both Kingsbridge and Riverdale, that I’ve seen or interacted with. Primarily, I would say Dinowitz, Abigail Martin, [Sai?] and Aaron [Stayman] because I’ve seen them either at the pantry [or] at events, local events, and things like that.”

Vanessa continued, “They always looked at either education, economics, and crime around this neighborhood.” Vanessa said these were the three issues she was most interested in seeing addressed by elected officials. She said her son, John, 20, was a first-time voter, though he did not cast his ballot yet. John said, “I don’t want to make a blind vote. It’s a small election so the vote actually matters. So, I need time… I wish I knew more about Steve, you know? There have been a lot of anti-Bowman commercials that I’ve been seeing, and I know they had a whole rally.”

 

Vanessa and John said they initially believed the primary elections were just for congressional races and didn’t realize until they got to the polls that there were other races in which they could vote.

We also spoke to Miguelina and her son Joshua, both from Marble Hill, at the same polling site. Like Vanessa and John, they experienced no wait time and felt they were able to make it to the booths quickly and without any issues. They declined to share who they voted for but both expressed how important it was to vote, simply because they said they have “a right to in this democracy.”

 

Miguelina said, “Democracy is very important to me.” Joshua concurred, adding how his being a member of the gay community contributed to his desire to vote. Miguelina said her top voting issues for this year were women’s rights, social security, and housing. Joshua added of New York politicians who he did not name specifically, “They’re not working with the president [Biden]. They’re helping the former president [Trump]. They’re doing something good for him.”

Meanwhile, Maureen, 67, a resident of Kingsbridge, said she did not experience any delays waiting in line to vote either. She said she felt informed about this year’s candidates due to the campaigning she had witnessed around The Bronx. While discussing the importance of voting, she said, “Everybody should vote. Otherwise, someone else is going to say what you should have said, and you end up getting what they want, not what you want.”

 

Maureen also mentioned that housing and law enforcement were two things she was expecting to be addressed in the context of this year’s elections, and highlighted her desire for representation on these matters.

Glad Tidings Church, which has been used as a polling station in the past, and is located at 2 Van Cortlant Avenue East in Bedford Park, was closed on Primary Election Day. A few people who were passing did not know where to go and vote.

 

One male resident who lives a few blocks away from the church wanted to vote but said there was no sign displayed on the church of where to go. He started to walk back home down Jerome Avenue. Norwood News reached out to the Board of Elections for comment. A spokesperson replied, saying, “We had no primary in the area. Hence – no polling sites open.” The spokesperson added, “Also, it has not been a poll site since 2023, [a] decision of the church to remove themselves due to their restructuring. We do stay in contact with them and hope to get them back soon.”

Another Bedford Park voter, “Ben,” told Norwood News of his expectations from political leaders voted into office, “The election is about members of congress who are supposed to be the voice of the people. I want them to make NYC a more car friendly environment, and work on the road repairs, make traffic smoother, and work on the mental illness problem in NYC.”

 

We waited for 45 minutes to speak to voters at JHS 80 on Mosholu Parkway on the border of Norwood and Bedford Park, but there appeared to be very few people voting at this polling site.

Meanwhile, the polling site located at P.S. 94 Kings College in Norwood, located at 3530 Kings College Place, was relatively quiet, only receiving 42 in-person votes as of 3:30 p.m. on Election Day, according to the site’s polling coordinator.

 

“As a citizen, you are supposed to vote,” one Norwood resident who has lived in the area for over 20 years and who declined to be named, told us. “We need our leaders to help us with things like the economy and all those kinds of things. We need that.” She added that the voting process was simple and quick. “It was easy because I’ve voted before,” she said.

To read some of our previous coverage on the primary elections and some related op-eds from local constituents, click here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.

Editor’s Note: In an earlier version of this story, we incorrectly reported that Congressman Jamaal Bowman “declared” an early lead after poll closure, rather than “showed” an early lead in the New York City portion of the results of the NY-16 race, which covers parts of The Bronx and Westchester County. This has since been corrected.