Queens DA Race: Judge To Review Dozens Of Disputed Ballots
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – The Queens district attorney race was back in court Tuesday, one week after a winner was declared.
During a hearing at the New York City Board of Elections, a judge reviewed some of the dozens of contested ballots.
Queens Borough President Melinda Katz currently leads public defender Tiffany Caban by 60 votes.
Last Monday, the New York City Board of Elections certified Katz as the winner.
Her campaign released the following statement Tuesday:
"Today, the judge patiently spent almost 6 hours scrutinizing each of the ballots objected to during the recount, as well as the disqualified affidavit ballots. The margin has barely changed, and the results are the same for a third time. Overwhelmingly, he rejected the Caban team's efforts and upheld the judgments of the Board of Elections, which last week certified Melinda Katz as the winner of the primary.
There is nothing left to count, and there is absolutely no math that would overturn Melinda's lead. It is now time to allow Queens to move on in order to begin working on crucial reforms to the District Attorney's office."
The hearing will resume Wednesday.
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Caban, a political newcomer, quickly claimed victory after the primary election on June 25, seemingly pulling off a stunning upset. But Katz took the lead after the Board of Elections manually recounted more than 90,000 votes.
Whoever wins will move on to the November general election against a Republic challenger in the final race to succeed longtime Queens DA Richard Brown, who died in May after serving as the borough's top prosecutor for nearly 28 years.
