Everything you need to know for the
June 23 Democratic primary elections
BRONX TIMES REPORTER,BTR JUNE 19-25, 2020 3
BY ALEX MITCHELL,
JASON COHEN AND
JENNA BAGCAL
With the June 23 Democratic
primary less than a week away,
voters will head to the polls to
choose candidates in some important
local races, including Congress,
State Senate and State Assembly.
ABSENTEE BALLOTS
Although the fi rst deadline for
absentee ballots passed on June
16, Governor Andrew Cuomo extended
the deadline to Monday,
June 22 for individuals who plan
on submitting applications in-person
at a local Board of Elections
offi ce. Learn more about absentee
voting here: elections.ny.gov/votingabsentee.
html.
EARLY VOTING
There are still opportunities
for individuals to vote early and
those who are interested can fi nd
their voting location at nyc.pollsitelocator.
com/search. Those who
want to participate in early voting
can do so until Sunday, June 21.
Check below for early voting dates
and times:
• Thursday, June 18, 2020 – 10 a.m.
to 6 p.m.
• Friday, June 19, 2020 – 7 a.m. to
3 p.m.
• Saturday, June 20, 2020 – 10 a.m.
to 4 p.m.
• Sunday, June 21, 2020 – 10 a.m. to
4 p.m.
WHO’S ON THE BALLOT
Here are some key races to
look out for:
Ny-14 Congressional
District
Areas: Pelham Gardens, City
Island, Country Club, Van Nest,
Morris Park, Parkchester, Pelham
Bay, Schuylerville, Allerton and
Throggs Neck
Progressive incumbent Alexandria
Ocasio-Cortez faces
award winning, Hispanic CNBC
journalist Michelle Caruso-Cabrera
in her primary for the fate
of the east Bronx and western
Queens.
In what has become a heated
campaign between the two Democratic
candidates, Caruso-Cabrera
accused AOC of avoiding a
debate between the two, which a
representative of Ocasio-Cortez
disputed.
Caruso-Cabrera said she values
the Democratic Party and is
the daughter and granddaughter
of immigrants. She described
how her family worked overnight
shifts and her father was one of the
fi rst to go to college.
During COVID-19, the congresswoman
has delivered over
772 meals to the Bronx to a Glebe
Avenue NYCHA senior complex,
Pelham Parkway houses, Parkside
houses and Throggs Neck Houses.
Her campaign’s fi eld team and
volunteers have made over 78,000
calls to check on Bronx residents’
well-being and connect them with
local resources. Also, the campaign
has raised nearly $576,000
for 26 community groups exclusively
through small-dollar, grassroots
donors.
Two other candidates, fi -
nancial controller and activist
Badrun Khan and professional
chess player and perennial candidate
Sam Sloan are also running
in this race.
NY-15 Congressional
District
Areas: Mott Haven, Hunts
Point, Melrose, High Bridge, Morrisania,
East Tremont, Tremont,
Morris Heights, University Heights,
Belmont, Fordham, Bedford Park,
West Farms, the Longwood Avenue
Historic District, and parts of
Soundview
This competitive race includes
12 Democratic candidates who all
vying for the Congressional seat.
Incumbent Congressman José E.
Serrano, who has served this district
since 2013, is vacating the
seat, leaving the race wide open
for a new representative.
District 18 Councilman Ruben
Diaz Sr. appears to be a favorite
in the race despite being criticized
for his anti-LGBTQ and misogynistic
viewpoints. The councilman
failed to show up to a virtual
debate on June 2, during which 10
of the candidates duked it out in
front of an online audience.
Recently, the New York Times
endorsed District 15 Councilman
Ritchie Torres saying that he
would be the “best positioned” to
beat Diaz, calling it an “urgent
task.”
Other candidates in the race
include former New York City
Council Speaker Melissa Mark-
Viverito, New York State Assemblyman
and Vice Chair of the
Democratic National Committee
Michael Blake, District 10
Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez,
Samelys Lopez, an activist in the
Housing Justice for All statewide
coalition and co-founder of Local
Democrats of NY, Tomas Ramos,
the program director for Children’s
Arts & Science Workshops
at the Bronx River Community
Center, Frangell Basora, a former
Congressional intern, copy
center owner and former candidate
for Bronx Borough President
Mark Escoffery-Bey, insurance
agent Black Lives Matter organizer
Chivona R. Newsome, entrepreneur
Julio Pabon and former
New York City Council aide
Marlene J. Tapper.
NY-16 Congressional
District
Areas: Baychester, Co-op City,
Eastchester, Edenwald, Fieldston,
Riverdale (North and South),
Spuyten Duyvil, Wakefi eld, Williamsbridge,
Woodlawn
What already was a race to
watch has now become the center
of political attention as Hillary
Clinton endorsed incumbent Congressman
Eliot Engel while Senator
Elizabeth Warren endorsed
his progressive foe, Jamaal Bowman.
Bowman was also endorsed
by Congresswoman Alexandria
Ocasio-Cortez, Senator Gustavo
Rivera, Senator Alessandra
Biaggi and Comptroller Scott
Stringer, helping him become a
front-runner to upset Engel on
Tuesday, June 23.
In Washington, Engel chairs
the house’s foreign affairs committee
and is only one of two New
York delegates to serve on that
committee.
Ironically in 2018, the establishment
democrat spoke highly
of AOC after she won her own congressional
race, telling the Bronx
Times “I have no concerns about
her ability to do a good job,” adding
that he was excited to work
with her.
State Senate District 32
Areas: Parkchester, Soundview,
West Farms, Hunts Point, Longwood,
Concourse, Melrose, Morrisania,
Mott Haven, East Tremont,
and Westchester Square
Senator Luis Sepulveda is defending
his incumbency against
Democratic challengers Pamela
Stewart-Martinez and John
Perez. Sepulveda replaced longtime
Senator Ruben Diaz Sr., who
opted to run for City Council in
2017. Sepulveda won the special
election in 2017 and elected to a
full term in 2018.
The senator currently serves
as the chairman of the Crime Victims,
Crime and Correction Committee.
This is Stewart-Martinez’s second
run for the 32nd Senate District
seat. She worked in a communications
company for seven years
before transitioning to the public
sector. Perez is currently the 87th
Assembly District Leader and former
career U.S. Army Sergeant.
State Senate District 34
Areas: Spuyten Duyvil, Riverdale,
Hunts Point, Castle Hill,
Throggs Neck, Pelham Gardens,
Pelham Parkway, City Island
Incumbent Senator Alessandra
Biaggi is being challenged by
James Gisondi. In 2018, Biaggi
beat longtime Senator Jeffrey
Klein, who served in the position
for 13 years. She is currently the
chair of Ethics and Internal Governance
Committee.
Prior to running for offi ce,
Biaggi was an advocate for the
people of New York, working in a
legal capacity to ensure that working
families had access to affordable
housing and helping small
businesses and municipalities
who had been affected by Hurricane
Sandy.
Her challenger, Gisondi, is
an attorney who served for two
terms as a State Committeeman
in the 80th Assembly District. The
Bronx resident graduated from
the CUNY School of Law.
State Assembly
District 78
Areas: Fordham-Bedford,
Photo via Getty Images
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