By MATT HIRSCH
Though Democrat Eric Adams emerged from Tuesday’s election as mayor of New York City, Republicans managed to take home noteworthy local victories.
As always, Staten Island remains the great red stronghold of New York City. With an endorsement from former President Donald Trump, Republican Vito Fossella handily defeated his challengers, Democrat Mark Murphy and Conservative Party member Leticia Remauro, for the seat of Borough President.
Fossella’s victory is being painted as a comeback win after leaving politics in 2009, when it was revealed that, as a congressman, he’d had a daughter from a long-lasting, secret extramarital relationship.
“I think, for the most part, Staten Islanders aren’t interested in your personal life. They’re interested in making sure you’re going to fight tooth and nail to protect them from the far-left Government that has taken over City Hall,” Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis, representative for District 11 covering Staten Island, said in an interview with Intelligencer.
In City Council races, Democrat Kamillah Hanks won the seat for District 49, on the North Shore of Staten Island, but Republicans David Carr and Joseph Borelli will represent Districts 50 and 51 (Mid-Island and South Shore). Borelli, incumbent for the most conservative area of New York City, won with 85 percent of the vote.
Staten Island wasn’t the only place where Republicans won. Joann Ariola was elected the new representative for City Council District 32, which had been the only red district in Queens (taking in Jamaica Bay, Howard Beach, Breezy Point and Rockaway Park). Now there are likely to be two Republican districts. Republican Vickie Paladino is likely to flip District 19, which includes Flushing and surrounding areas. She is leading longtime Democrat politician Tony Avella by almost seven percent.
In South Brooklyn, Inna Vernikov won the seat for District 48, which includes Manhattan Beach, Brighton Beach, Sheepshead Bay and Midwood. And Brian Fox is leading Democratic incumbent Justin Brannan for Council District 43, holding a two percent lead. District 43 encompasses Fort Hamilton, Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights, and Bath Beach.
New York City, with its five boroughs, has been one of the most Democratic-leaning areas of the nation; but rising crime levels and vaccine mandates in the city have been key issues for Republican hopefuls such as Fox. He released a statement calling for the end of vaccine mandate layoffs and has been a vocal proponent of expanding the police budget.
Those two issues, crime levels and mandates, have been Republican talking points, as shootings have doubled in the last two years, according to NYPD Compstat, and 9,000 municipal employees were put on leave after refusing the jab, as reported by the Associated Press. Eighteen firehouses across New York City were out of service on Thursday, because of staff shortages due to the mandate.
The 2021 elections revealed red cracks in New York City’s blue armor. This was true even though the turnout of voters was only 24 percent of the total eligible, less than half of last year’s massive turnout of 61.9 percent, according to the New York City Campaign Finance Board. With crucial midterm elections coming up in 2022, Democratic politicians in New York City have to re-strategize if they don’t want another “shellacking,” as former Democratic Congressman Steve Israel (who represented parts of Queens and Long Island) put it.