You are reading

Election Day: The Queens Races to Watch and Where to Vote

Voters cast their ballots. (NYC Board of Elections)

Nov. 2, 2021 By Allie Griffin

Voters will head to the polls one last day to decide who will be running the city government next year.

Polls are open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. today, Election Day, following nine days of early voting from Oct. 23 through Oct. 31. In total, 36,546 Queens residents took advantage of early voting, according to early tallies released by the NYC Board of Elections.

While the primary election tends to be more competitive in the Democratic-majority city, the general elections ultimately decide who gets sworn into office in January.

Some interesting Queens races to follow include the District 32 council race in which Democrat Felicia Singh is hoping to flip the borough’s lone Republican-held council seat representing Belle Harbor, Breezy Point, Broad Channel, Howard Beach, Lindenwood, Neponsit, Ozone Park, Richmond Hill, Rockaway Park, Roxbury, South Ozone Park, West Hamilton Beach and Woodhaven.

Singh, an educator, activist and lifelong resident of Ozone Park, is facing Joann Ariola, who is the chair of the Queens County GOP and a longtime civic leader in Howard Beach. The race is expected to be the most competitive in the borough.

While it is not expected to be as competitive as the District 32 race, the District 19 race is likely to be closer than others in the borough. Tony Avella, a Democrat who represented the district more than 10 years ago, is likely to win the seat, although residents have elected a Republican in the past, as recently as 2009.

The district covers the neighborhoods of Auburndale, Bay Terrace, Bayside, Beechhurst, College Point, Douglaston, Flushing, Little Neck, Malba and Whitestone. Many residents, particularly in Whitestone and College Point, voted for Trump in 2020.

He will appear on the ballot next to Vickie Paladino, who won the Republican primary, and John-Alexander Sakelos, a professional stage actor, union member and professor who won the Conservative primary.

Another interesting race, albeit less competitive, is the District 22 election. The winner will take office this month as the Astoria council seat has been sitting vacant since Costa Constantinides left office earlier this year. Democrat Tiffany Cabán, who is favored to win, is on the ballot next to Republican Felicia Kalan and Green Party candidate Edwin DeJesus.

The map below lists the candidates appearing on the ballot in each Queens council race.

Winners of the council elections this year will complete a two-year term — instead of the typical four-year council term — for the first time in two decades due to a provision in the city charter related to the census.

Queens voters will also cast their votes for Queens borough president. Incumbent Donovan Richards is running against Republican challenger Thomas Zmich.

They will also vote for mayor, public advocate and comptroller. The mayoral election, which has many candidates, will ultimately come down to Democrat Eric Adams versus Republican Curtis Sliwa.

Voters can find their poll site by typing their address into the BOE site.

Voters who requested an absentee ballot must postmark or deliver their ballot to a poll site or county board by the end of the day today also.

email the author: news@queenspost.com

3 Comments

Click for Comments 
Donald Trump needs to be charged with treason

Voting for Brandon makes you a traitor. What type of fool mocks an attempted overthrow of your own country? The power of propaganda and brainwashing

3
3
Reply

Leave a Comment
Reply to this Comment

All comments are subject to moderation before being posted.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Recent News

Repeat hate crime offender charged in anti-Muslim subway attack in Forest Hills: DA

A Southeast Queens man is being held without bail after he was criminally charged with assault in the first degree as a hate crime and other charges for allegedly punching and kicking a Muslim woman on an E train in Forest Hills during the early morning hours of Wednesday, June 18.

Naved Durrni, 34, of 106th Avenue in Jamaica, was arraigned in Queens Criminal Court on Thursday and additionally charged with aggravated harassment in the first and second degrees.

Hate Crimes Task Force investigating bomb threats against Mamdani: NYPD

The NYPD’s Hate Crimes Task Force launched a probe into multiple death threats made against Assembly Member Zohran Mamdani after his district office at 24-08 32nd St. in Astoria received four expletive-filled phone voicemails, on various dates, making threatening anti-Muslim statements by an unknown individual, including a threat to blow up his car.

The calls were made from an untraceable number and labeled the mayoral candidate a “terrorist who is not welcome in New York or America” in a message phoned in on Wednesday morning.

Queens Defenders founder charged with stealing nonprofit funds as second scandal unfolds

The founder of the Queens Defenders and her husband have lawyered up after they were indicted by a federal grand jury for allegedly stealing tens of thousands of dollars from the non-profit organization.

Former Queens Defenders executive director Lori Zeno, 64, surrendered Wednesday at the Brooklyn federal courthouse. Zeno was arraigned on an indictment charging her and Rashad Ruhani, 55, with wire fraud conspiracy, theft, money laundering conspiracy and other crimes.