Here are the most interesting Queens elections to watch today

Assembly candidate khaleel anderson observes the vote count in queens borough hall in july. eagle photo by david brand

By David Brand

Will voters evict the Jamaica Estates developer from the White House? That’s for the national news outlets to cover.

Here in Queens, we have our own presidential election to worry about. The race for Queens Borough President pits Democrat Donovan Richards against Republican Joann Ariola, along with third-party candidate Dao Yin running on the extremely chill “Red Dragon” Party line.

A Richards victory would make him the first Black man elected as Queens executive, with that milestone coming amid a revolutionary movement against institutional racism across the city and country.

But the race for borough president is just one of the developments to keep an eye today in the tightly woven web of local politics, where one election can immediately trigger a new one, and where one politician’s decisions set the wheels in motion for a rival’s rise.

Queens’ 18 assemblymembers and seven state senators are all on the ballot today, and while Democrats are expected to sweep, there are some cool contests to keep an eye on.

Khaleel Anderson makes history

At just 24, Far Rockaway organizer Khaleel Anderson is poised to make history today by becoming perhaps the youngest person ever elected to the New York State Assembly.

Anderson won the Democratic primary for the Assembly District 31 seat vacated by former Assemblymember Michele Titus. The district, hard hit by COVID-19, has not had Assembly representation since Titus’ move to the Civil Court bench on Jan. 1.

We’re still trying to get confirmation on whether Anderson would be the youngest assemblymember ever (if you have information on this, please email david@queenspublicmedia.com) but he’s definitely the youngest elected in a long time.

He will take that title from Central Queens Assemblymember Daniel Rosenthal, who, come to think of it, faces some interesting choices of his own today.

Daniel Rosenthal’s future

Rosenthal is running unopposed for reelection in Central Queens’ Assembly District 27.

He will win, but his immediate political future is about to get a lot more complicated.

Rosenthal’s former boss, Councilmember Rory Lancman, is leaving the Council today to start a new job in Gov. Cuomo’s Administration. That will trigger a special election to fill Lancman’s seat — a race Rosenthal says he may enter.

At least eight other candidates have filed to run to represent Council District 24, which includes Kew Gardens, Fresh Meadows, Hillcrest, Jamaica Estates, Briarwood and part of Jamaica

The field features former Councilmember Jim Gennaro, progressive activist Moumita Ahmed, attorney Stanley Arden, Democratic District Leader Neeta Jain, higher education executive Dilip Nath, attorney Soma Syed, small business owner Deepti Sharma and Judicial Delegate Mohammed Uddin.

Will Rosenthal go from one election right into campaign mode?

A Richards win triggers another special election

How “special” are these elections when we get like five every year?

But anyway a borough president victory by Councilmember Donovan Richards will open his Council District 31 seat and trigger a special election to finish out his term, which ends in 2021.

Nine candidate have already filed to run in the June primary. And most will register for the likely special election, too. (Gotham Gazette has a great early preview).

But next year’s nonpartisan special election and ranked-choice voting will see some serious wheeling and dealing.

Can community leader Pesach Osina win a bloc of Orthodox Jewish voters in Far Rockaway as the other candidates split the vote among predominantly Black residents of the district?

Will Assemblymember Alicia Hyndman enter the race? She hasn’t ruled it out.

Who will receive the backing of the Queens County Democratic Party?

And can a candidate, like Rockaway Youth Task Force organizer Jazmine Outlaw, galvanize the same voters that propelled Anderson?

Stick with the Queens Daily Eagle for election coverage all day today. And follow along with Editor David Brand on Twitter. He’s @DavidFBrand