Sen. Hoylman Holds Strong Lead Over Challenger Elizabeth Glass

MANHATTAN, NYC — State Sen. Brad Hoylman held a clear lead Tuesday defending his seat against challenger Elizabeth Glass in a race that likely won't officially be called until a glut of absentee ballots are counted.

Hoylman, who has held the seat since 2013, held just about 67 percent of the nearly 17,000 votes that had been cast as of Wednesday afternoon. His challenger, East Village teacher Elizabeth Glass, held onto 34 percent of the votes, according to NY1.

But the 27th District primary race — as with most others facing a vote Tuesday — likely won't officially be called for days, or weeks, as an unprecedented number of absentee ballots sent in as New Yorkers stay home during the coronavirus crisis are counted.

Glass, a first-time challenger, said Wednesday morning that she plans to wait for the full official vote count before ending her campaign.

"Let’s see where the final primary election results net out. But know this: WE ARE JUST GETTING STARTED," Glass wrote on her blog.

Hoylman echoed Glass' promise to wait and said he was humbled by the "prospect of continuing to serve this vibrant Senate district in Albany."

“It’s premature to declare victory until every vote is counted, but I’m grateful to all the voters in the 27th Senate district who voted in person to keep me as their Senator by a margin of 2-to-1," he said.

Up to 700,000 absentee ballots were sent out citywide for Tuesday's city, state and federal primaries. In the 27th District in particular, more than 52,000 absentee ballots were given out.

Voters had until Tuesday to postmark and mail in their ballots.

The slow results was only one of many factors that made for a chaotic day of primary races. New York City Democrats also dealt with snaking lines, broken scanners and incorrect ballots given out at their polling sites throughout the day.

Tuesday's election was the first time Hoylman has faced a primary challenger since taking his seat in the senate in 2013.

Glass, a 51-year-old mother of four, has said concern about the COVID-19 vaccine and a bill sponsored by Hoylman related to the 2019 measles outbreak prompted her to run.

Hoylman, who lives in Greenwich Village with his husband and two daughters, currently chairs the senate's Judiciary Committee and has previously served as a Democratic District Leader, chair of Manhattan Community Board 2 a board member of Tenants & Neighbors and Citizen Action and as president of the Gay and Lesbian Independent Democrats.

Manhattan's 27th District encompasses parts of Greenwich Village, Chelsea, Hell's Kitchen, Columbus Circle, Times Square, the Upper West Side, the East Village, Midtown East, and the Lower East Side.

Read more about Hoylman's platform here and more about Glass here.