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Queens District Attorney: Tiffany Caban Reportedly Loses Lead To Melinda Katz After Paper Ballots Counted

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – There's been a stunning turn in the Democratic primary race for Queens District Attorney. Despite declaring victory multiple times, Tiffany Caban has now fallen behind primary challenger Melinda Katz for the spot on the November ballot.

Katz, the Queens Borough President, has reportedly overtaken Caban after paper ballots were counted from June 25's extremely tight contest.

Tiffany Caban, Melinda Katz
Tiffany Caban and Melinda Katz, Democratic opponents in the Queens District Attorney race.(credit: CBS2)

MORE: Queens District Attorney: Primary Race Between Tiffany Caban And Melinda Katz Too Close To Call

With nearly all precincts reporting on election night, the New York City Board of Elections projected that Caban was leading with 39.57 percent of the vote last Wednesday morning. Katz was at 38.3 percent.

There were just over 1,000 votes separating the two candidates. Five other Democrats finished lower in the primary race.

Caban repeatedly declared victory during a late-night speech at her campaign headquarters last month, while Katz told her supporters she was already looking ahead to a re-count in the close election.

"We won the Queens district attorney's office!" Caban told supporters last Tuesday. "They said we could not win, but we did it, y'all."

It now look as if the race will head to an official recount with Caban now not winning, but trailing in the polls.

Katz, who continued to say the race wasn't over, issued her own victory declaration on Wednesday night.

"I am proud to have been chosen as the Democratic nominee for for Queens District Attorney. We know that these numbers can and will be subject to recount, and there may be legal challenges, but what matters most is the will of Queens voters," Katz said in a statement.

A Caban spokesperson, however, said they're still confident she will be the winner.

"Queens voters are inspired by Tiffany Caban's campaign and her vision for real criminal justice reform. If every valid paper ballot vote is counted, we are confident we will prevail," Monica Klein said in a statement.

The city's Board of Elections says it hopes to have the manual recount completed by July 16.

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