Brooks-Powers wins in NYC’s first real test of ranked-choice voting
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Veteran government official Selvena Brooks-Powers won the special election in Council District 31. Campaign photo
By David Brand
Veteran government strategist Selvena Brooks-Powers declared victory in the special contest to represent Queens’ Council District 31 Thursday, more than three weeks after residents headed to the polls for the city’s first true test of ranked-choice voting.
Brooks-Powers held a slim lead over Pesach Osina, a former borough director in the city comptroller’s office, after machine votes were tallied on Election Day Feb. 23. But she did not achieve an outright majority in the nine-candidate field, prompting the first use of ranked-choice voting in New York City history.
Board of Elections officials in Middle Village hand-counted the ballots and eliminated the bottom seven finishers before Brooks-Powers achieved 51.6 percent of the 7,451 votes cast.
Ranked-choice elections allow voters to pick their top five candidates. If no candidate receives a first-ballot majority — as was the case in CD31 —the last place finisher is eliminated and voters who picked that candidate have their second choice tallied. That process continues until one candidate receives a majority or all votes are counted.
Osina finished second with about 39 percent. Another 936 ballots, or 12.6 percent, were “exhausted,” meaning the voter did not rank Brooks-Powers or Osina, and did not count in the final tally.
In a statement, Brooks-Powers said she was honored to be elected to represent the district, which includes parts of Southeast Queens and the eastern portion of the Rockaway Peninsula.
“I stand on the shoulders of the leaders that have come before me, but especially that of Juanita Watkins, the first woman of color to serve a NYC Council district and the only woman to have ever served the 31st District — almost 20 years ago,” she said.
She cited the disproportionate impact of many crises and catastrophes on the district, from Superstorm Sandy to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Our community is resilient and we will recover from this pandemic and come back stronger,” she said. “I will work tirelessly to ensure we get our fair share of support, resources, and respect from City Hall.”
Osina conceded defeat and congratulated Brooks-Powers in a statement.
“We ran a great campaign, but the voters of Queens’ 31st Council District have exercised their right, and have used the power of their votes, their ranked choice votes and they have spoken,” he said.
Osina also finished second in a 2013 special election for Council District 31 won by Donovan Richards. That race is frequently cited by ranked-choice voting supporters to justify the need for the new format. Richards defeated Osina by 79 votes after getting under 30 percent of the total. Brooks-Powers finished fifth in that race.
The seat opened in December 2020 when Richards was sworn-in as Queens borough president.
He congratulated his successor in a series of tweets Thursday. “I am confident CM-elect Brooks-Powers will build on the work my office and I started and chart a new course for the future of the 31st District. She will make SEQ proud,” he said.
Brooks-Powers will serve the rest of Richards’ term, which ends Dec. 31.
She, Osina and several other candidates may face off again in three months for the Democratic primary for a full term in the council.
Brooks-Powers and two other candidates, Terrell Miller and Monique Charlton, have filed campaigns for the June race.
