Democratic Nominee Chosen For Vacant Crown Heights Assembly Seat

CROWN HEIGHTS, BROOKLYN — Local organizer Brian Cunningham has secured the Democratic Nomination in Crown Heights' upcoming special election, which will choose who will replace Assembly Member Diana Richardson.

Cunningham — who received 90 percent of votes at a Monday county committee meeting of the Brooklyn Democratic Party — was one of five candidates nominated for the seat, which will face a general election on March 22.

The 43rd District seat was left vacant when Richardson, who has served since 2015, left to become the deputy borough president under newly-elected Borough President Antonio Reynoso. The 43rd District includes parts of Crown Heights, Prospect Lefferts Garden, East Flatbush and Wingate.

"I’m honored and humbled that the members of County Committee have put their faith in me to represent the people of District 43 and the Democratic Party in this special election,” Cunningham said in a statement. “Over the next several weeks, our campaign will continue speaking to voters across the district to ensure that every corner of every community has a chance to have their voice heard and to discuss the important issues we face.”

Cunningham, now a leader in the National Institute for Criminal Justice Reform, has served as a senior aide for state Sen. Kevin Parker, chief of staff under former Council Member Laurie Cumbo and ran for office in the 40th City Council District in 2017, according to his website and reports.

His nomination came after a tense seven-hour meeting where party leadership and reformers disagreed about the use of proxy votes, or those made on behalf of a member who cannot attend the meeting in person, according to the Brooklyn Paper.

Proxies by two district leaders, including the husband of party Chair Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, outnumbered those cast by those present at the meeting. Member who don't attend the meeting can authorize another member to vote on their behalf, though reformers have contended the party uses the proxies to gather the votes of disengaged members, according to the Paper.

It is unclear whether any of the other four candidates vying for the Democratic Nomination will seek a third-party run on the ballot.

The 43rd District is one of several special elections this year, including another assembly election in East New York's 60th District earlier this month.