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Assemblywoman Pheffer Amato has earned another term in Albany.
By Michael V. Cusenza
Two months later, we finally have a winner.
After a manual hand recount and several court cases, Assemblywoman Stacey Pheffer Amato (D-Howard Beach) has prevailed over Republican challenger Tom Sullivan and been re-elected to represent the 23rd District in South Queens.
“I know this has been a long and difficult process for everyone involved,” Pheffer Amato said. “The wheels of our American democracy do not always turn as quickly as we’d like, but preserving the integrity of our elections, ensuring the accuracy of the count, and defending the right of every voter’s voice to be heard is more important than expediency.”
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GOP candidate Tom Sullivan was narrowly defeated by a total of 15 votes.
The counting of 74 newly-cured absentee ballots, four affidavit ballots, and 11 ballots with votes cast for the two candidates all added to Pheffer Amato’s lead, securing her re-election by a final margin of 15 votes.
“I want to thank all of my supporters, my family and friends, and my constituents for their patience throughout this process, and I am humbled and honored to once again be selected by the voters to represent this wonderful district,” Pheffer Amato added. “We have important work to do to fight for our community and stand up for our working families. This election is over, and I look forward to continuing this work for my constituents.”
The assemblywoman emerged victorious with one of the largest over-performances in the state, according to her campaign, exceeding the top-of-the-ticket by 24 percent due to crossover support.
The election results are expected to be officially certified in the coming days.
