Konst drops out of Wester Queens Senate race, coalescing progressive vote behind Gonzalez
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State Senate candidate Kristen Gonzalez, State Senator Michael Gianaris and Nomiki Konst, who dropped out of the District 59 State Senate race over the weekend and endorsed Gonzalez. Photo via Konst/Twitter
By Jacob Kaye
The race for the only open State Senate district in Queens saw a major shakeup over the weekend as early voting began throughout New York State.
Nomiki Konst, a progressive media personality and former candidate for New York City public advocate, dropped out of the race for State Senate District 59, a newly created district that covers parts of Long Island City, Astoria, Greenpoint, Williamsburg, Kips Bay and Tudor City.
In withdrawing from the race, Konst, who was one of two progressive candidates running for the seat, endorsed Kristen Gonzalez, a Democratic Socialists of America-backed product manager for American Express and, now, the only remaining progressive candidate in the race.
Gonzalez, who was the first to declare her candidacy in the race, is facing off against Elizabeth Crowley, a former City Councilmember, and Mike Corbett, a former staffer to former City Councilmember Costa Constantinides.
“This three month long campaign has become one of the most expensive primaries in New York Senate history – and in light of the overwhelming amount of money being spent in this campaign, particularly by real estate interests, I have made the decision to suspend our campaign at this time and endorse Kristen Gonzalez,” Konst said in a statement.
Gonzalez’s campaign and Konst’s campaign frequently sparred, particularly on social media, about the potential Konst had to play spoiler in the race – Konst was one of the last candidates to declare for the race. Last month, Konst accused Gonzalez supporters of attempting to “threaten, harass [and] physically intimidate” her.
However, that fight has been pushed aside in an effort to defeat Crowley, who has raised, by far, the most amount of money in the race to represent a portion of Western Queens in the State Legislature.
“I’m grateful for Nomiki’s endorsement at this critical moment,” Gonzalez said. “We must come together to defeat developers and big corporations, and we’re looking forward to uniting the progressive movement to defeat special interests next week.”
The endorsement appeared to be brokered by Deputy Majority Leader Michael Gianaris, whose soon-to-be former district overlapped with the current District 59 lines. Gianaris has represented parts of Astoria, Long Island City, Woodside, Sunnyside, Ridgewood and Glendale in the State Senate since 2010. Since his first election, Gianaris has become a leading progressive voice in Queens.
“This election is too important to allow wealthy interests to influence its outcome. Nomiki Konst has been a committed activist for progressive causes and is again displaying that commitment by uniting progressives behind Kristen Gonzalez’s campaign,” Gianaris said. “I look forward to this movement thriving in the future with Senator Kristen Gonzalzez and Nomiki’s progressive leadership.”
Both Konst and Gonzalez have accused Crowley of breaking a pledge not to take real estate money after recent reporting by THE CITY found that the former candidate for borough president received around $150,00 from real estate industry groups.
Crowley did not respond to the Eagle’s request for comment.
“It is clear that my opponent wants to only focus on the inside political track,” Crowley told THE CITY last month. “Despite that—I’m not playing that game. The stakes are too high and voters at every door I visit are deeply concerned how we will improve their quality of life. That’s why I am running.”
In all, Crowley has raised over $1.5 million, while Gonzalez has raised around $217,000.
Also in the race is Corbett, who is more politically aligned with the more moderate Crowley. The former City Council staffer has raised around $74,500, according to recent filings. Konst had raised around $260,900 before dropping out.
Many see the race as mirroring the 2018 race between now-Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and former Queens County Democratic Party Leader Joe Crowley, the cousin of Elizabeth Crowley. Ocasio-Cortez shocked the former congressman when she beat him in the Democratic primary for New York’s 14th congressional district. The election brought about a new wave of progressive victories in Western Queens.
Since AOC’s victory, DSA-backed candidates, including Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani and City Councilmember Tiffany Cabán, have been elected to office. Earlier this year, progressive Juan Ardilla beat out Joanna Carmona, who was backed by the Democratic party, in the race for Assembly District 37, which overlaps with Senate District 59.
Crowley has been endorsed by Rep. Gregory Meeks, the chairman of the Queens County Democratic Party, Mayor Eric Adams and City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams.
Gonzalez has received the backing of Ocasio-Cortez, Mamdani, Cabán and the Working Families Party.
Early voting in the race began on Saturday and ends on Sunday, Aug. 21. Election day is Tuesday, Aug. 23.
Head to vote.nyc for more information.
