The incumbent won the Primary in the 31st District, and will now run in the November election to continue to represent Rosedale, Laurelton, Springfield Gardens, Far Rockaway and Arverne.
James Sanders Jr., who has served for three terms, was unanimously voted the first African-American Chair of the Economic Development Committee in 2001. He said his first focus would be job creation.
With 107 of 107 precincts reporting, he garnered 40 percent of the vote on Primary Day, September 15.
“My team and I have done an amazing job while we’ve been up at bat for our community, but the job is not finished,” said Sanders. “We’ve brought in a lot of resources, and with those resources we’ve helped the community in many ways. We’ve rebuilt every library in our district, and we’ve done a lot for the schools, but like I said the job is not done.”
His opponents were Marquez Claxton, a retired NYPD Detective, with 12 percent; attorney Jacques Leandre, who got 22 percent of the vote; Michael Duncan, former Chief of Staff for the 31st Council District who is currently the director of a non-profit organization, 44 percent; Lou Grays, with 6 percent; and Frederick Lewis, also with 6 percent.
Most of the candidates agreed that the challenges facing the district include housing – foreclosures, displacement and overdevelopment – a lack of after school activities and resources for seniors, and unemployment.
