Last year, I made a big hit with a column about the write-in vote in NYC elections—so big a hit that it got picked up as a national story by Politico.
As I noted then, several articles, as well as anecdotal evidence, indicated that the campaigns for Bob Turner in the Orthodox and the Russian press were so intense that voters from outside the 9th Congressional District experienced great frustration when they could not vote for him.
And that the large number of write in votes for other office received by Turner indicated this as well.
The same turns out to be true again this year.
Voters read about campaign which animated and excited them and this had an impact, especially among aspiring ethnics (Chinese wanting to vote for Grace Meng and Dominicans wanting to vote for Adriano Espaillat) or those with a strong social motivation (Black nationalists wanting to vote for Charles Barron and panicked white ethnics wanting to cast a vote for Hakeem Jeffries).
Add to this the confusion of a reapportionment year, where no one knew who their new member of Congress was, and you had the formula for mass confusion.
Here then are all the NYC write in votes received in the June Federal Primary by bona fide candidates for Federal Office, but only in the races other than those they were actually running in.
(I adhere to the Democratic philosophy that the intent of the voter is paramount, so any discernable variation upon a candidate’s name has been accepted here as a vote for that candidate).
Republican Primary for US Senate: Grace Meng 25 (all but one in Queens); Charlie Rangel 11; Hakeem Jeffries 9; Charles Barron 6; Adriano Espaillat 5; Erik Dilan 5; Rory Lancman 4; Yvette Clarke 3; Greg Meeks 3; Elizabeth Crowley 2; Nydia Velazquez 1; Robert Mittman 1.
5th Congressional District (Queens): Bob Turner 8; Rory Lancman 7, Grace Meng 5; Elizabeth Crowley 5; Charles Barron 4; Hakeem Jeffries 2; Adriano Espaillat 1; Charles Rangel 1; Erik Dilan 1; Nydia Velazquez 1; Robert Mittman 1; Wendy Long 1.
6th Congressional District (Queens): Bob Turner 5; Charles Rangel 2; Adriano Espaillat 1; Charles Barron 1; Joseph Marthone 1.
7th Congressional District (Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens): Grace Meng 26 (it’s two Chinatowns Jake); Charles Barron 19, Hakeem Jeffries 10, Adriano Espaillat 10; Charles Rangel 2; Bob Turner 2; Joseph Marthone 1.
8th Congressional District (Brooklyn, Queens): Nydia Velazquez 30; Erik Dilan 20; Bob Turner 4; Yvette Clarke 4; Adriano Espaillat 1; Wendy Long 1.
9th Congressional District (Brooklyn): Charles Barron 71, Hakeem Jeffries 69; Nydia Velazquez 8; Bob Turner 5; Dan O’Connor 3; Adriano Espaillat 2; George Martinez 1; Erik Dilan 1
13th Congressional District (Manhattan, Bronx): Charles Barron 2; Eliot Engel 2; Nydia Velazquez 1; George Martinez 1; Wendy Long 1.
16th Congressional District (Bronx): Adriano Espaillat 17; Charles Rangel 8; Clyde Williams 1; Charles Barron 1; Hakeem Jeffries 1.
So, what does this add up to?
Citywide Total: Charles Barron 104; Hakeem Jeffries 91; Grace Meng 56; Nydia Velazquez 41; Adriano Espaillat 37; Erik Dilan 27; Charles Rangel 24; Bob Turner 19; Rory Lancman 11; Elizabeth Crowley 7; Yvette Clarke 7; Greg Meeks 3; Wendy Long 3; Dan O’Connor 3; George Martinez 2; Eliot Engel 2; Robert Mittman 2; Joseph Marthone 2; Clyde Williams 1.
Congratulations Chuck—you got exactly the victory that you deserved.