He’s not waiting for the mail-in ballots!
Bronx activist and educator Jamaal Bowman on Wednesday declared victory over veteran Rep. Eliot Engel — whom he leads based on machine votes from Tuesday’s primary in what would be a huge left-wing upset of a powerful Democrat who has served in Congress for 31 years.
In an email to supporters, the former middle school principal, 44, said it would be nearly impossible for Engel, chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, to overcome Bowman’s commanding 61 percent to 35 percent lead in the Democratic primary for the 16th Congressional District. He currently holds a nearly 9,000-vote lead based on machine voting, with 91 percent of those ballots counted.
“From the very beginning, we anchored our campaign in the fight for racial and economic justice. We spoke the truth — about the police, about systemic racism, about inequality — and it resonated in every part of the district,” Bowman wrote.
“Many doubted that we could overcome the power and money of a 31-year incumbent. But the results show that the people of NY-16 aren’t just ready for change — they’re demanding it,” he continued.
The Justice Democrats-backed candidate promised to shake up Washington in a victory reminiscent of Democratic socialist Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s stunning upset of Democratic stalwart Joe Crowley in the neighboring Bronx district in 2018.
Engel’s campaign was plagued by negative headlines in the lead-up to the New York Democratic primary and he found himself out of step with two major crises roiling his district.
A damning investigation by The Atlantic found him missing from his coronavirus-ravaged district for nearly two months, and when he returned, he was caught on a hot mic appearing to say he didn’t care about civil protests in the Bronx.
Engel, 73, is yet to concede the seat he has held for 10 terms as mail-in ballots still need to be counted over the next week.
Bowman earned endorsements from the progressive establishment, including AOC, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and is all but assured to be headed for Congress after winning the Democratic primary in the solidly blue district.
“The world has changed. Congress needs to change too. But if we can take on entrenched power and wealthy interests here in Westchester and the Bronx, then we can do it all across this country,” Bowman wrote to supporters Wednesday morning.
“I’m a Black man who was raised by a single mother in a housing project. That story doesn’t usually end in Congress. But today, that 11-year-old boy who was beaten by police is about to be your next Representative,” he continued.
“I cannot wait to get to Washington and cause problems for the people maintaining the status quo,” he wrote.
