NY Assembly vote in 'Little Odessa' too close to call

Winner will be first recent Russian-Jewish immigrant to be elected to state legislature.

By MICHAL LANDO
subway 88 (photo credit: )
subway 88
(photo credit: )
NEW YORK - The milestone race for the New York State Assembly between two Russian Jewish immigrants in Brooklyn is so tight, no one has yet been declared an official winner after Tuesday's balloting. As of Wednesday morning, Alec Brook-Krasny, the favored candidate, was roughly 100 votes ahead of his opponent Ari Kagan in their race for the Democratic primary in the 46th District. Whoever wins the primary is expected to win the November election. Still to be tallied are the absentee, emergency and affidavit ballots, which could turn the election in either direction. According to Gerry O'Brien, a political consultant in Brooklyn, however, the "paper tends to follow the results on the machine," which would leave Krasny in first place by a slim margin. "This is a lot closer than anyone expected," O'Brien said. "People thought Krasny would do a lot better." Krasny was endorsed by many local and state officials. The official tally could take another week, according to the New York Elections Board. "With more than 100 paper ballots and 100 absentee ballots left to count, we are not conceding the election," Kagan said. "My opponent had the backing of all the political establishment, he had a huge machine working for him." Brook-Krasny could not be reached for comment. Whoever wins the race will be the first recent Russian immigrant to be elected to a state legislature. The 46th District includes the heart of Brooklyn's Russian community, Brighton Beach, also known as "Little Odessa."