What Started With A Dozen Democrats Ended With (Almost) One

One of New York’s most highly-anticipated Democratic primary races — featuring a field of a dozen candidates vying for a single, unclaimed seat in Downtown’s 10th Congressional District — ended with the same disorienting feeling that marked the months-long slog to the finish line.

Daniel Goldman, heir to the Levi Strauss & Co. fortune and lead counsel in the first impeachment investigation of former President Donald Trump, seemed to eke out a win over Downtown NYS Assembly Member Yuh-Line Niou the day after polls closed, with 25.72% of the vote compared to her 23.71%, according to unofficial election night results from the NYC Board of Elections (BOE). Only roughly 1,300 votes separated the pair — and as of the morning after the Tuesday primary, as many as 13,000 absentee ballots remained uncounted; The Associated Press called the race anyway early Wednesday morning.

“I am humbled to be your Democratic nominee for Congress,” Goldman tweeted the morning after election day. “I have immense respect for the other candidates in the field and look forward to working with them to achieve our shared progressive vision for this city and our democracy.”

By early evening on August 23, three hours from the closing of polls, just under 102,500 of Manhattan’s 789,892 registered Democrats, tallied in February, had checked in to cast their ballots in person, either on election day or during early voting — on par with the first summer primary. Across Manhattan’s three Congressional districts, over 23,700 mail-in ballots were received by the NYC BOE.

Waiting For Every Last Vote

While Goldman moved forward with his acceptance, Niou awaited more clarity to make her next move. “We’re going to keep working until every vote is counted,” she tweeted after Goldman’s victory remarks, concluding that she and her supporters “showed that a dedicated crew of volunteers can stand up to big money” and promising to share more information at a later date.

Other candidates’ fates were more clear. Incumbent NY-17 Rep. Mondaire Jones scored just over 18% of the vote, East Side Council Member Carlina Rivera ended up with nearly 17% and all the rest hovered well below the double-digits, according to NYC BOE data, with many receiving under 1% of the vote. The day after the election, Goldman hadn’t yet received calls from other candidates congratulating him on his apparent win, NY1 reported.

Voters at P.S. 3 on Hudson Street noted that the Congressional candidates overwhelmingly shared similar points of view. “It was mostly a race of progressives, to some degree or another ... which made it really a little overwhelming,” said Elissa, who voted for NYS Assembly Member Jo Anne Simon. In the days leading up to the end of the race, Niou and Jones — both progressive candidates, often referenced in stride with Rivera — told NY1 they were hoping for voters to give them a boost over Goldman, who has been painted as more moderate.

Now, the November ballot may still feature a progressive yet; Niou, endorsed by the Working Families Party, told the Washington Post on Thursday that she’s “currently speaking with WFP and my community about how we can best represent the needs of this district,” a sign she may continue her run on that line regardless of the primary results.

NY1 reporter Courtney Gross tweeted the day after the election that it’s Jones, rather than Niou, who could technically run as a Working Families Party candidate. At the time of publication, Jones had not released a statement regarding the outcome of the race and did not respond to a request for comment.

A Clearer Win

The path to victory was far more decisive for incumbent State Senator Brian Kavanagh, who’s represented Downtown Manhattan (plus parts of Brooklyn, before maps were redrawn) since 2017.

Kavanagh will go on to represent the newly-drawn District 27 after walking away from Tuesday’s primary with over 58% of the vote, compared to Democratic District Leader Vittoria Fariello’s roughly 29% and Danyela Souza Egorov’s less than 13%, according to preliminary election night results. “It has been a true honor to serve and represent these communities over the past few years,” Kavanagh wrote on Twitter, “and I am beyond grateful for the opportunity to continue fighting for you in the Senate.”