The Queens Borough President special election, originally set for March 24 and then rescheduled for June 23, has been canceled.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed an executive order on Friday, April 24, to cancel the special election for the position, which was vacated by Melinda Katz when she became Queens District Attorney in January and is now held by Sharon Lee. There will still be a primary on June 23, followed by the Nov. 3 general election.
The order also cancels the state Assembly and Senate special elections. This means the southeastern Queens Assembly District 31 seat, previously held by Michele Titus, will be vacant for a year.
“The state assembly and state senate special elections, which are otherwise scheduled to be held on June 23, 2020 are hereby cancelled and such offices shall be filled at the general election,” the executive order reads. “The special election to be held for the office of Queens Borough President is hereby cancelled, and such office shall be filled at the general election.”
The current candidates for Queens Borough President are Councilman Costa Constantinides, Councilman Donovan Richards, former Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley, retired NYPD officer Anthony Miranda, former Assistant District Attorney James Quinn and businessman Dao Yin.
Acting Queens Borough President Sharon Lee said she is committed to representing the borough.
“This is an extraordinary time. The borough president’s office, however, remains open, operational and fully committed to serving the constituents of Queens,” Lee said in a statement. “I made a commitment to represent and serve the people and families of Queens, to the best of my ability and for as long as necessary, and this commitment still stands. More importantly, we must not allow the virus to silence our voices and render us invisible. Whether via absentee ballot or at the polls, I urge all voters in Queens to vote in the June and November elections like our lives and our futures depend on it, because they do.”
