NYC election results: New York City Council winners celebrate Election Night victories, despite low voter turnout
NEW YORK -- It was a busy Election Night for New York City Council, with all 51 seats up for grabs across the five boroughs.
CBS New York has team coverage of several key races, including a hotly contested seat in southern Brooklyn.
District 47 -- Brooklyn
When the district lines were redrawn last year, Councilmembers Justin Brannan and Ari Kagan both landed in the new district representing Bay Ridge and Coney Island. Kagan, previously a Democrat, then switched parties to Republican.
Brannan took home the win, with Kagan conceding about an hour after polls closed.
"Make no mistake, this was a tough race and, at times, the toxic tribalism that has really ravaged our politics beyond recognition felt insurmountable," Brannan said.
"This race did not end the way we wanted. We worked very hard, we brought important issues that are relevant to all New Yorkers," said Kagan.
District 43 -- Brooklyn
This has been called the "Asian opportunity district," because of its 54% Asian majority. Democrat Susan Zhuang won the seat, defeating both her opponents, including Republican Ying Yan.
District 13 -- the Bronx
In a surprisingly tight race in the East Bronx, GOP challenger Kristy Marmorato pulled ahead of Democrat incumbent Marjorie Velazquez, setting up an apparent upset and clearing the way for a Republican to hold a council seat in a borough that has long been a Democratic stronghold.
District 19 -- Queens
In a rematch of the 2021 race that vaulted her to the council, incumbent Republican Vickie Paladino beat Tony Avella, a former councilman and state senator.
District 9 -- Harlem
Yusef Salaam, one of the Exonerated Central Park Five, celebrated his victory, completing a stunning reversal of fortune decades after he was wrongly imprisoned in an infamous rape case. He ran unopposed after winning an intense multi-candidate primary.
"The good thing about my story is that my story represents the microcosm of the macrocosm of all cases just like mine," he said in his victory speech. "When people see me, I want them to see themselves. I want them, when they think about the word 'impossible,' that they understand that inside the word 'impossible' is 'I'm possible.'"
Low voter turnout
The Board of Elections says numbers were low this season, adding people are more drawn to presidential, gubernatorial and mayoral races.
"Some have lost faith in the system. Some people don't believe that them voting is actually going to lead to a change in their outcome, and a lot of people are really not connected to their government," Assembly District Leader Richard David said.
The latest numbers show 313,000 New Yorkers voted, compared to 4.6 million active voters in the city.
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