Benjamin Chou, a 33-year-old active-duty firefighter and lifelong northeast Queens resident, secured the Democratic nomination in Tuesday’s primary for New York City Council’s 19th District, according to unofficial results from the Board of Elections.
With approximately 95% of scanners reporting, Chou earned 7,232 votes—67.12% of the total—while challenger Alexander J. Caruso garnered 3,479 votes (32.29%). A total of 64 write-in ballots were recorded.
Chou, born in Flushing to Chinese-Burmese immigrant parents and raised in Douglaston, is a Bronx Science and Queens College graduate who earned a master’s degree from Baruch College. He joined the FDNY in 2014 and currently serves as president of its Phoenix Society, an organization supporting AAPI firefighters. He campaigned as a community-first outsider motivated by faith and civic duty, with an emphasis on affordability, public safety, constituent services and rebuilding trust in City Hall.
“What inspired me to run was that after years of seeing people on their worst day, just seeing how you can affect policy and change, and you can do a lot more preventative [work], that’s kind of an avenue that I felt like I could do some good in to explore,” Chou said.
On Tuesday evening, Chou held a watch party at Patsy’s Pizzeria in Whitestone, where he thanked supporters and expressed confidence in the campaign’s direction. “I felt pretty confident. Whatever is best for the district, I’m happy to do,” he said of the election day experience.
“To everyone who voted for me, I’m grateful of course and I’m hoping we get an opportunity to do good, positive change,” he added. “Just bringing back that we’re stronger together in this community—that’s always been the biggest thing that’s most important, and I’m hoping that the majority of people will also agree with that.”
The 19th Council District includes the neighborhoods of Auburndale, Bayside, Bay Terrace, Beechhurst, College Point, Douglaston-Little Neck, Flushing, and Whitestone. The seat is currently held by Republican Vickie Paladino, who is seeking re-election in November.
Paladino, who was first elected in 2021 and serves as the Council’s Minority Whip, has built a profile around conservative advocacy on issues ranging from small business recovery and public safety to congestion pricing, migrant shelters, and LGBTQ-inclusive education. The race is expected to be one of the most closely watched in the city, as Chou attempts to flip the seat in a district that remains majority Democratic but has leaned moderate in recent years.
Chou’s general election opponent, Paladino, is well-funded and known for mobilizing a loyal conservative base. Chou, meanwhile, will look to broaden his coalition and capitalize on voter enthusiasm following his decisive primary victory.
Caruso, a Bayside-based substitute teacher and political organizer of Italian and Colombian descent, positioned himself as a progressive alternative, focusing his campaign on housing, education equity, transparency, and youth civic participation. Though he lost the primary, Caruso will remain on the November ballot under the Working Families Party line.
The general election will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 4.
