Republicans make a statement in Queens, unofficial results show
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Early and unofficial results of the 2021 general election in Queens showed Republican candidates leading in a handful of races throughout the borough. Eagle photo by Liam Quigley
By Jacob Kaye
Unofficial results of the 2021 general election began trickling in soon after the polls closed on Tuesday night.
The outcome of many of the races in Queens – and largely throughout the city – were to be expected.
However, several Republican candidates showed strong results in races throughout Queens Tuesday night, leading in a handful of contests. Though absentee ballots – there are about 20,000 absentee ballots returned in the borough – have yet to be counted, it’s likely many of the Republican leads hold even after the count.
The Republican’s biggest lead came in District 32, where GOP Chairperson and Republican nominee Joann Ariola had nearly twice as many votes as her Democratic challenger Felicia Singh with around 86 percent of the scanners reported.
The race for the last Republican council district in Queens was considered one of the most competitive in the city, as Singh vied for votes in the northern, heavy-immigrant and non-white populated portion of the district and Ariola looked for votes in the southern, whiter and more affluent portion of the district.
Should her lead stand, it will be the first time Ariola has been elected to public office, something she has tried to do several times dating back to 1996.
City Council candidate Joann Ariola high-fives a voter in District 32 on Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2021. Photo via Ariola/Twitter
Neither Singh nor Ariola responded to requests for comment.
There was also the matter of District 30, where incumbent City Councilmember Robert Holden was running on four party lines – Democratic, Republican, Conservative and Save Our City.
Holden first ran for office as a Democrat in 2018 and lost to then-City Councilmember Elizabeth Crowley in the Democratic primary. However, he then ran on the Republican party line in the general election and beat her by a couple hundred votes.
On Tuesday night, with about 99 percent of the scanners reported, Holden had received a couple thousand more votes as a Republican than he had as a Democrat.
In District 19, Republican nominee Vickie Paladino held around 50 percent of the vote with 99 percent of scanners reported. Democratic nominee and former-City Councilmember and State Senator in the district Tony Avella held around 43 percent of the vote.
Paladino also beat out John-Alexander Sakelos, who ran on the Conservative and Save Our City party lines. Sakelos was the Queens GOP’s pick during the Republican primary but he lost to Paladino, who joined a warring Republican faction, by a couple hundred votes.
“We fought hard for every single vote and we emerged victorious in the end,” Paladino said in a statement. “Now the hard work begins of delivering the positive change this district has called for tonight.”
Republican nominees also proved strong in judicial races.
City Councilmember Paul Vallone, who comes from a long line of legislators and judges, was losing to Republican candidate Joseph Kasper by a little less than 2,000 votes with around 99 percent of scanners reported.
City Councilmember Paul Vallone was losing to Republican nominee for Civil Court, 3rd Judicial District Joseph Kasper on Tuesday night. File photo by John McCarten
Elsewhere in the borough, Democrats held hefty leads over their Republican challengers.
Democratic nominee Tiffany Caban was up big over Republican nominee Felicia Kalan with about 97 percent of scanners reported. Caban held about 63 percent of the vote to Kalan’s 31 percent.
“Our victory tonight proves that when we organize, we win,” Caban said in a statement. “We’ve got a lot of work ahead of us – the work is never done. We’ll continue throwing down with our organizing partners, and I’ll keep working with my incoming colleagues – some of the dopest BIPOC organizers I know – to build up our city systems that support the health and safety of everyone. I can’t wait to keep working together on behalf of District 22.”
Democrat Lynn Schulman was beating Republican Michael Conigliaro by around 17 percent of the vote with around 99 percent of scanners reported.
Schulman said that her apparent victory can be credited to the diverse coalition of voters that rallied behind her.
“I’m running to represent everyone,” Schulman told the Eagle. The values that I have and the work that I want to do and my priorities that I want to pursue were the things that resonated with everyone and I feel very glad about that.”
Curtis Sliwa, the Republican nominee for mayor who lost Tuesday, beat Democratic nominee and winner Eric Adams in Schulman’s Assembly District.
“I did well and I won, which meant people crossed over,” she said.
Schulman will also make history as a member of the first majority woman City Council. In Queens, unofficial results show that 11 of the borough’s 15 seats will be held by women.
“It means a lot to me – representation matters,” Schulman said. “Health care is a big part of my platform and women's health is very important, and it often takes a back seat. This is an opportunity to do some great work.”
Queens Borough President Donovan Richards appeared to be headed toward his first full term in office – with 88 percent of scanners reported, Richards held around 65 percent of the vote over Republican Thomas Zmich Tuesday night.
Boroughwide, turnout saw a bit of a decline this election cycle when compared to the last mayoral race in 2017. Counting absentee ballots, around 263,000 people voted in Queens this year compared to around 286,130 ballots cast in 2017.
In the judicial races, both Supreme Court Justices Kenneth Holder and Denis Butler appeared to be headed back to the bench for a second 14-year term.
Supreme Court candidates Karen Gopee, Laurentina McKetney Butler, David Kirschner and Michele Titus appeared to have won a seat on the bench, as well.
Once the election is certified, Gopee will become the first South Asian and Indo-Caribbean person elected to the State Supreme Court in New York history.
“The fact that I'm standing here and have been elected by the popular vote is amazing,” Gopee said during her results party on Tuesday night. “We won.”
See a full list of results in Queens below.
Borough President - Countywide
Donovan Richards Jr. (Democratic)* – 65.72 percent
Thomas Zmich (Republican/Save Our City/Conservative) – 34.09 percent
City Council District 19 (College Point, Whitestone, Malba, Bayside, Douglaston, Little Neck, North Flushing, Auburndale)
Tony Avella (Democratic) – 34.09 percent
Vickie Paladino (Republican/Independent) – 49.72 percent
John-Alexander Sakelos (Conservative/Save Our City) – 7.08 percent
City Council District 20 (Flushing)
Sandra Ung (Democratic) – 59.44 percent
Yu-Ching Pai (Republican/Save Our City/Conservative) – 40.28 percent
City Council District 21 (East Elmhurst, Jackson Heights, LeFrak City, Corona)
Francisco Moya (Democratic)* – 98.40
City Council District 22 (Astoria, Jackson Heights, East Elmhurst, Woodside. Rikers Island)
Tiffany Caban (Democratic) – 62.79 percent
Felicia Kalan (Republican/Save Our City/Conservative) – 31.10 percent
Edwin DeJesus (Green) – 5.84 percent
City Council District 23 (Glen Oaks, Bellerose, Fresh Meadows, Oakland Gardens, Floral Park, Douglaston–Little Neck, Bayside, Queens Village)
Linda Lee (Democratic) – 63.42 percent
James Reilly (Republican/Conservative) – 36.34 percent
City Council District 24 (Jamaica, Briarwood, Kew Gardens Hills, Fresh Meadows, Pomonok, Hillcrest)
James Gennaro (Democratic)* – 71.49 percent
Timothy Rosen (Republican) – 23.25 percent
Mujib Rahman (Conservative) – 4.85 percent
City Council District 25 (Jackson Heights, Elmhurst)
Shekar Krishnan (Democratic) – 60.49 percent
Shah Shahidul Haque (Republican) – 19.49 percent
Suraj Jaswal (Libertarian) – 2.70 percent
Fatima Baryab (Diversity) – 16.93 percent
City Council District 26 (Long Island City, Sunnyside, Astoria, Woodside)
Julie Won (Democratic) – 76.83 percent
Marvin Jeffocat (Republican/Conservative) – 22.64 percent
City Council District 27 ( Cambria Heights, Hollis, Jamaica, St. Albans, Queens Village, Springfield Gardens)
Nantasha Williams (Democratic) – 99.60 percent
City Council District 28 ( Jamaica, Rochdale Village, Richmond Hill, South Ozone Park)
Adrienne Adams (Democratic) – 88.24 percent
Ivan Mossop (Republican) – 11.55 percent
City Council District 29 (Forest Hills, Kew Gardens, Rego Park)
Lynn Schulman (Democratic) – 58.90 percent
Michael Conigliaro (Republican/Save Our City/Conservative) – 40.86 percent
City Council District 30 (Maspeth, Glendale, Middle Village, Woodhaven, Ridgewood, and Woodside)
Robert Holden (Democratic/Republican/Conservative/Save Our City)* – 97.73 percent
City Council District 31 ( Arverne, Brookville, Edgemere, Laurelton, Springfield Gardens, Far Rockaway)
Selvena Brooks-Powers (Democratic) – 90.27 percent
Vanessa Pollie Simon (Republican/Save Our City/Conservative) – 9.63 percent
City Council District 32 (Ozone Park, Belle Harbor, Breezy Point, Broad Channel, Rockaway Park, Neponsit)
Felicia Singh (Democratic) – 31.31 percent
Joan Ariola (Republican/Save Our City/Conservative) – 67.48 percent
Kenichi Wilson (Community First) – 1.09 percent
City Council District 34 (Bushwick, Ridgewood, and Williamsburg)
Jennifer Gutierrez (Democratic) – 90.29 percent
Terrell Lynn Finner (Power 2 the People) – 4.53 percent
Lutchi Gayot (Blk Lives Matter) – 4.62 percent
Justice of the Supreme Court - Countywide, six to be elected
Denis Butler (Democratic/Republican) – 18.51 percent
Kenneth Holder (Democratic/Republican) – 16.01 percent
Deborah Axt (Working Families) – 2.83 percent
Bob Cohen (Working Families) – 2.70 percent
Laurentina McKetney Butler (Democratic) – 12.64 percent
David Kirschner (Democratic/Republican) – 16.57 percent
Karen Gopee (Democratic) – 11.48 percent
John Spataro (Republican) – 6.36 percent
Michele Titus (Democratic) – 12.51 percent
Judge of the Civil Court - Countywide
Soma Syed (Democratic) – 37.8 percent
William Shanahan (Republican/Conservative/Save Our City) – 24.69 percent
Andrea Ogle (Democratic) – 37 percent
Judge of the Civil Court - 3rd Municipal Court District
Paul Vallone (Democratic) – 47.47 percent
Joseph Kasper (Republican/Save Our City/Conservative) – 52.3 percent
Judge of the Civil Court - 4th Municipal Court District
Cassandra Johnson (Democratic) – 83 percent
Daniel Kogan (Republican/Conservative) – 17.21 percent
