This afternoon we have our first detailed look at how the candidates in the District 1 City Council Primary fared in each neighborhood. Overall, Margaret Chin beat incumbent Alan Gerson 39-percent to 30-percent, or 4541 votes to 3520 votes. There’s been some talk in the last several days that Chin won almost entirely due to her strong performance in Chinatown. Here are the preliminary numbers, from Chin’s office:
- Chinatown: Chin 2383, Gerson 906, PJ Kim 406
- Lower East Side: Chin 1020, Gerson 1149
- East Village: Chin 139, Gerson 110
- Village South: Chin 223, Gerson 456
- Soho: Chin 305, Gerson 197, Pete Gleason 257, Kim 256
- Tribeca: Chin 326, Gerson 340, Kim 329
- Financial District: Chin 309, Gerson 368, Kim 227
- Battery Park City: Chin 106, Gerson 226, Kim 191
So, Chin did, in fact, do very well in Chinatown. She held her own on the Lower East Side. On Grand Street, a Gerson (and Shelly Silver) stronghold, she lost to Gerson 343 to 748. But in the rest of the neighborhood, it was Chin 677 to 401 for Gerson. Chin also won the East Village and Soho (with some help from Gleason and Kim). Tribeca and the Financial District were competitive.
A frequent complaint heard on the LES and in Chinatown is that the East Side is neglected (financially) compared to the West Side. Some observers are speculating whether the pendulum has now shifted – with the East Side now poised to benefit from a city councilmember with Chinatown roots. Chin has repeatedly vowed to treat all neighborhoods in the district fairly. These results back up her campaign’s contention that she drew support from across the district.
Gerson has delayed conceding to Chin, saying he wants to “examine questions about the votes reported.”
Not to deny Margaret her well-earned due, but many feel what propelled her to victory this fourth time was the multiple West Side Caucasian candidates this year that split that voting bloc, while in the past there were multiple Asian candidates splitting the East Side Asian vote (Kim ran as a Westsider basically).
A one-on-one East Side vs. West Side would be interesting.
Meanwhile, Gerson continues to hover in cloud cuckoo-land, as Schopenhauer calls it.
Is anyone surprised about this reaction from a ‘nice’ and ‘honorable’ politician, as people who do not know Gerson well describe him?
Wow did Gerson and Kim get pounded in Chinatown!
So much for brilliant strategist Ray Cline’s scheme in running Kim to spit the Chin vote in Chinatown. All he did was split the Gerson vote everywhere else. Well done Ray and thank you!