NEW YORK (AP) – A Republican stronghold nestled in deep blue New York City will remain in the control of the GOP.
Staten Island District Attorney Daniel Donovan – who empaneled the grand jury that declined to indict a white police officer who placed Eric Garner, an unarmed black man, in a fatal chokehold – on Tuesday captured a vacant congressional seat that spans Staten Island and a small part of Brooklyn.
Donovan, who was shadowed by the Garner case throughout the campaign, won easily, much like his predecessor Michael Grimm, who was under federal indictment, did last November. The seat became empty when Grimm resigned in January after pleading guilty to tax fraud.
The 11th Congressional District, which is considerably more conservative than other districts in the city, is mostly drawn from Republican-heavy Staten Island. After investing heavily in the Grimm race, national Democrats largely declined to help City Councilman Vincent Gentile’s campaign, and local powerbrokers including Mayor Bill de Blasio and Gov. Andrew Cuomo did little more than offer perfunctory endorsements.
Donovan becomes the lone Republican to represent the city in Congress. His victory will put an end to the tally on the front page of the Staten Island Advance newspaper, which noted the number of days the area was without congressional representation – more than 100.