Grace Lee Wins Dem Primary for State Senate District 27

In a battle that pitched two progressive against one another, Grace Lee has won a Democratic primary that will likely send her from the State Assembly to the State Senate. She earned 59 percent of the vote against challenger Yuh-Line Niou, who pulled 39 percent.

The preliminary results in the light-turnout election, which still must be certified by the Board of Elections, gave Lee a more than 7,000 vote advantage, or 17,756 votes against Niou’s 10,595.

Lee is considered a virtual lock to succeed State Senator Brian Kavanagh, who is retiring after a 20-year career in local politics. She will face Republican candidate Jason Murillo—also known as “DJ Loudmouth”—in a November general election contest.

Lee is heavily favored to win in the general election as 65 percent of the voters in the district are registered Democrats, compared to only 10.1 percent who are registered Republicans and 20.8 percent who are registered independents.

The race may have come down to the candidate’s respective ground games and name recognition. Niou is a former Assembly Member who opted to run for Congress in New York’s crowded District 10 four years ago, in a race won by Dan Goldman. She has not held elected office in the four years since, which Lee has held the Assembly seat for two terms.

Lander, who just trounced Goldman in the Democratic primary, had endorsed Niou. She also had the endorsement of the Working Families Party and U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders.

But Lee had the support of most of the Democratic establishment including Kavanagh, Gov. Kathy Hochul, City Council Speaker Julie Menin, Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal, and New York Attorney General Letitia James.

Both had come out against building a jail in Chinatown and have joined calls to tax the rich.

Lee has said that “her top priority” in the State Senate will be making New York City more affordable, which she wants to accomplish by cutting housing and childcare costs. She has also vowed to “stand up” to “powerful interests,” such as abusive landlords and “corporations that nickel-and-dime working families.”

Local State Assembly Members Keith Powers and Tony Simone—as well as City Council Member (and former Assembly Member) Harvey Epstein—showed up to support Lee at a primary night watch party, which was attended by Our Town Downtown and held at Bar Venice.

Not long after polls closed, Lee arrived and stepped up to a podium, where she was flanked by her husband and three children on one side and Kavanagh on the other.

In opening remarks, Kavanagh told the room of assembled volunteers and supporters that Lee’s primary win had transformed his impending retirement, turning it from “a bittersweet moment” into a simply “sweet” one.

“Grace Lee is somebody who knows how to dig in, who understands what her community needs—not just standing up to the powers that be, not just criticizing the status quo, but finding creative and effective ways to change the status quo,” Kavanagh said.

“We never acted as though this seat belonged to us,” Lee said. “Public service is not a consolation prize. It is not a fall-back option. It is a privilege. When something is a privilege, you earn it, by working hard.”

“Together, we did that, by making 115,000 phone calls. We knocked over 30,000 doors,” she added. “We had thousands of conversations with neighbors about how to make New York more affordable, safer, and a place where working families can really thrive.”