Brian Barnwell won the seat for the 30th Assembly District seat Tuesday night, with 67.8 percent (22.657) of votes cast.
“It feels good. It’s rewarding,” Barnwell said. “We’ve put a lot of hard work in since day one so it’s always obviously a great feeling when you put in hard work and it pays off.”
Barnwell beat nine-term incumbent Margaret Markey during the primaries in a shocking upset. Barnwell received 63.8 percent of the vote (1,622) to Markey’s 36.2 percent (921).
Assembly District 30 encompasses Woodside, Maspeth parts of Sunnyside, Long Island City and Astoria.
The tide turned against Markey in August amid the ongoing debate over a proposed homeless shelter in Maspeth, in the heart of her district. Markey took flack from residents for failing to show up at a public meeting and a protest over the shelter, although she expressed opposition to the plan in statements that her office issued.
The Woodside resident beat republican Tony Nunziato, who he shared a close relationship with throughout the campaign season. Nunziato received 32.2 percent (10,782) votes cast.
“Congratulations to Brian Barnwell,” Nunziato said. “I look forward to working with you to make our communities better.”
Barnwell said he will focus on issues that affect the middle-class and senior citizens.
“We’re going to focus on the middle class, those fighting to get into the middle class and seniors,” Barnwell said. “I feel like they’re the ones that are being ignored by the politicians we have now. They’re taken for granted.”
He added that the rising prices of generic medications hurts senior citizens and he would like to see more union jobs in the city, especially in terms of affordable housing.
“That’s what built this country, the city and the state — union jobs,” he said.
“To the volunteers and to the community, I really appreciate the fact that they honored me with their vote and I will not let them down,” Barnwell added. “I will not let them regret that.”
