DEMOCRACY 2021
Brooklynites cast their ballots in the City Council elections
Democrats had a good
night in Brooklyn on Tuesday,
as candidates across Kings
County secured victories in
elections sure to shape the
borough’s future — though
southern Brooklyn turned noticeably
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COURIER L 4 IFE, NOVEMBER 5-11, 2021
red, with high turnout
among the borough’s Republican
voters.
Some contests saw a victor
emerge in the early hours
of election day, including Borough
President Eric Adams in
the mayor’s race, Park Slope
Councilmember Brad Lander
in the Comptroller’s election,
and current-Councilmember
Antonio Reynoso winning the
borough president’s contest.
Brooklyn native and Public
Advocate Jumaane Williams
also secured reelection to his
post.
The New York City Council
is also set to see signifi -
cant changes, as the majority
of legislators in the body are
term-limited from seeking reelection,
opening the door for
dozens of newcomers.
Because Democrats signifi
cantly outnumber Republicans
in the borough, most
candidates on the Democratic
party line won — though a
cadre of southern Brooklyn
Council districts remained up
for grabs ahead of election day.
Affi davit and absentee ballots
will play a huge role in determining
some of these close
races, and will be counted in
the days before and after election
day.
So here’s where we stand:
Sheepshead Bay
Republican Inna Vernikov
was elected to the City Council
from South Brooklyn’s
48th District Tuesday night,
trouncing her Democratic
opponent Steven Saperstein
in what was expected to be a
close contest, as Republicans
posted strong showings across
the city.
According to Board of Elections
results, Vernikov, a divorce
attorney, held 64 percent
of the vote to special education
teacher Saperstein’s 36 percent
with 96 percent of scanners
reporting as of Wednesday, a
massive 28-point margin in
what many anticipated to be
one of the tightest races in the
entire city.
“This is not about me, this
is about the people of this district,”
Vernikov told Brooklyn
Paper at her election night
victory party in Midwood. “I
think this was a loud message
that was sent by this district
to the Democrats, to the progressive
left, that we are sick
and tired of the policies they
have implemented to destroy
our city and our district.”
Saperstein conceded the
race to Vernikov Wednesday
morning, after determining
the margin was too high a
bar to cross even if absentee
ballots went his way, which
he told Brooklyn Paper he
had been expecting. He postulated
that a highly charged
political atmosphere led residents
to cast a protest vote for
Vernikov.
“There’s no question we’re
disappointed in looking at the
initial results,” Saperstein told
Brooklyn Paper at his election
night party in Brighton
Beach. “We have a great team,
everybody worked hard. People
have a lot of emotions right
now, across the district, how
they feel about things. People
don’t like the way things are
going, and it was a protest vote
for sure.”
Vernikov’s strong showing
came as Republicans outperformed
expectations across
the board. The GOP defended
its three seats on the Council,
two on Staten Island and
one in Queens, and may assume
up to seven in the coming
Council.
In the 43rd District, Republican
Brian Fox is narrowly
beating incumbent Bay
Ridge Councilmember — and
speaker candidate — Justin
Brannan, 50.44 to 49.39 percent
with 98 percent of precincts
reporting. Brannan
said Wednesday morning that
he “looks forward to counting
every vote.”
In the Coney Island-centered
47th District, Democrat
Ari Kagan is only narrowly
leading Republican
and QAnon subscriber Mark
Szuszkiewicz, 51 to 49 percent,
with 97 percent reporting.
ELECTION 2021
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