Pesach Osina claims victory in closely watched South Queens Assembly race

Pesach Osina declared victory in Assembly District 23 on Tuesday. He’s expected to succeed Stacey Pheffer Amato in the district. Eagle photo by Ryan Schwach

By Ryan Schwach

Democrat Pesach Osina appeared to win the 23rd Assembly District in South Queens, succeeding retiring incumbent Stacey Pheffer Amato, according to unofficial vote totals.

The longtime City Council staffer will join a Democratic majority in Albany on what appeared to be a banner night for the party in New York and nationwide. Osina was supported by the retiring incumbent and the Queens Democratic Party.

As of 10 p.m. on election night, Osina led with 51.9 percent of the vote and a lead of around 1,400 votes over his opponent, Republican Thomas Sullivan, with 89 percent of precincts reporting.

“What we saw is communities coming together,” Osina told the Eagle. “From Far Rockaway to Breezy and to Ozone Park.”

“We will be able to serve that on day one,” he added.

Voting returns on Tuesday night showed Osina performing well in the Orthodox Jewish and South Asian corners of the district, communities he needed in order to prevail over his Republican opponent.

Osina was pulling in around 95 percent of the vote in the heavily Jewish voting districts that border Nassau County on Tuesday night.

Voters there split the ballot. Republican candidate for governor Bruce Blakeman, the Nassau County executive who lost to incumbent Gov. Kathy Hochul on Tuesday night, performed just as well in the same areas.

Osina thanked supporters at an Ozone Park bar on Tuesday night, acknowledging Pheffer Amato, who was the first to introduce Osina as the district’s next assemblymember.

“It's a big peninsula, and I think he's going to reach every end of it,” Pheffer Amato told the Eagle. “He’s a perfect person for the job, and I'm so proud.”

Sullivan could not be immediately reached for comment, but he officially conceded the race at his own election night event in Breezy Point.