Amid the COVID Pandemic which left the city’s Board of Elections scrambling to send out absentee ballots ahead of Tuesdays’ primary, Assemblymember Nicole Malliotakis (R-Bay Ridge, Staten Island) appeared to defeat Joe Caldarera to challenge incumbent U.S. Rep. Max Rose (D-Bay Ridge, Staten Island) in November.
As of Wednesday morning, Malliotakis won 70.4% of the vote (12,952) to Caldarera 29.6% (5,444). Despite the final results, Caldarera said he felt “confident” before the count began.
“We have offered a true conservative choice in this race against an establishment never-Trumper, and I’m proud of the campaign we ran,” he said.
As Malliotakis celebrated her victory, she asserted that she was the one who could defeat Rose. “A victory in tonight’s Republican Primary and my endorsement by the Conservative Party lay the groundwork for defeating Max Rose in November,” she said.
“Over the past 18 months Max Rose has proved, by his votes and his words, that he is far too liberal for the 11th Congressional District; he votes with Nancy Pelosi, Alexandria Occasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, and Jerry Nadler over 90% of the time. Congressman Rose voted to impeach President Trump, release convicts from prison and to use your tax dollars to fund political campaigns, in addition, he’s enabled the radical left by supporting bail reform and closing Rikers Island. It’s time for him to go and I will defeat him on Election Day.”
Meanwhile, Attorney Mike Tannousis claimed victory in the Republican primary to succeed Malliotakis in the Assembly, appearing to defeat Marko Kepi, a Marine Reserve Member, by just over 1,000 votes.
“My campaign has knocked on tens of thousands of doors in the last several days,” said Tannousis, citing his campaign’s major supporters.
“With support of leaders like Rudy Giuliani, Nicole Malliotakis, all of our local Republican elected officials, major law enforcement unions, and the grassroots members of our Party, I am confident we will be victorious tonight.”
However, Kepi is not yet ready to concede defeat, waiting for officials to count 2,600 absentee ballots next week, most from Staten Island voters.
“It’s a beautiful day for an election and I’m beyond proud to be playing such a vital role in our Democratic process,” he said.
“As a U.S. Marine, I know how important our right to vote is and the sacrifices made to protect it. I’ve been blessed with overwhelming support and I feel confident we will secure a strong victory.”
