Grace Meng won the June 23 Democratic primary for New York’s 6th Congressional District by a margin of 4,460 votes, defeating challenger Chuck Park 18,134 to 13,674 (56.85% to 42.87%), according to unofficial results from the New York City Board of Elections. A precinct-level breakdown published by the Queens Jewish Link shows that Orthodox neighborhoods across central Queens voted for Meng at higher rates than her districtwide numbers, with some individual election districts returning lopsided results.
In Assembly District 27, which covers the heavily Orthodox stretch of Kew Gardens Hills and Hillcrest, Meng beat Park 3,463 to 1,019 (77% to 23%), according to Queens Jewish Link reporter Shabsie Saphirstein’s analysis of Board of Elections returns. Across Assembly District 27 election districts 20 through 30, Meng received 2,033 votes to Park’s 164, earning more than 92% of the two-candidate vote in those districts. ED 25 went 293 to 6, ED 27 went 398 to 7, and ED 29 went 252 to 5.
Saphirstein reported similar results in other Orthodox areas. In Assembly District 25, covering Fresh Meadows and northeastern Queens, Meng posted margins of 99 to 20 in ED 16 and 93 to 29 in ED 43. In Assembly District 24, which includes parts of Kew Gardens, she carried ED 60 by 133 to 45 and ED 62 by 131 to 34. In Assembly District 28, which takes in portions of Forest Hills, she won ED 40 by 162 to 67 and ED 52 by 121 to 51. Saphirstein wrote that Orthodox communities across central Queens “voted decisively, delivering overwhelming margins that significantly exceeded” Meng’s districtwide performance.
Park, a former U.S. diplomat who drew scrutiny during the campaign for remarks he made about a migrant teenager, lost across the district. The largest gaps were in Orthodox precincts.
Saphirstein’s analysis also flagged results in other races. In Far Rockaway, Pesach Osina won the Democratic primary for Assembly District 23 with 59.8% of the vote against Mike Scala; in heavily Orthodox precincts within that district, Osina’s margins included 430 to 5 in ED 29 and 344 to 15 in ED 27. In Brooklyn, Joey Cohen-Saban advanced as the Democratic nominee for Assembly District 45 in an uncontested primary.
Saphirstein wrote that overall turnout in Queens was below what community leaders had expected, with many eligible voters not casting ballots despite early voting being available boroughwide. The results reported by the Board of Elections remain unofficial.
Featured image: Bushwick Daily image
