A voting booth at PS 8 in Great Kills during Primary Day 2018 for Staten Island's congressional race. (Staten Island Advance/Annalise Knudson)Staten Island Advance/Annalise Knudson
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Early voting for the June primary is set to begin Saturday, June 18 and run through Sunday, June 26. Primary Day is Tuesday, June 28.
Staten Islanders will be voting in the Democratic and Republican races for governor, the Democratic race for lieutenant governor, the Democratic race for the 61st State Assembly seat and the Republican race for the 63rd State Assembly seat for the June primary.
Click here more information about early voting.
Learn about the candidates in the June primary below:
Governor Kathy Hochul is running for re-election as governor. She served as New York’s lieutenant governor between 2014-2021. Hochul was sworn in as governor in August 2021 after former Governor Andrew Cuomo resigned amid sexual harassment allegations. The state’s first female governor hit the ground running when she entered office, signing more than 400 bills to date.
Rep. Tom Suozzi (D-Long Island) has been a member of the U.S. House since 2017. He previously held office as county executive of Nassau County and mayor of Glen Cove, NY. Suozzi identifies as a “common sense Democrat who gets things done.” The congressman’s campaign includes a 15-point crime intervention and prevention plan as well as plans to expand affordable housing, lower property taxes, cut state income tax by 10%, address infrastructure issues, establish government accountability and improve schools.
Jumaane Williams is currently New York City’s Public Advocate and has held the position since 2019. Prior to that, Williams represented the 45th District in the City Council. High quality affordable housing, improving public safety and healthcare access are at the center of his campaign. Williams is also running on the Working Families Party line.
Former Westchester County Executive Rob Astorina has his sights set on the governor’s office for a second time. Astorina ran and lost in the general election in 2014. He is currently a business and media consultant and previously worked in the radio industry. Public safety, economic growth and education reform are among the issues the former county executive plans to address. Astorina is also an avid defender of the first and second amendments. He has stated that if elected he would roll back all COVID-related mandates.
Andrew Giuliani, who is a former special advisor to former President Donald Trump, is aiming high in his first run for public office. He is former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s son and played professional golf for five years. Giuliani is also adamantly opposed to COVID-related restrictions. Following CBS-TV’s policy requiring anyone entering the broadcast center to be vaccinated, Giuliani – who is unvaccinated – opted to participate in the Republican gubernatorial debate remotely. His “Day One Action Items” if elected include “full repeal of bail reform,” signing an executive order to protect qualified immunity and allocating resources toward addressing crime in the subway and on trains.
Businessman Harry Wilson plans to take his skills from “turning around large complex organizations,” saving thousands of jobs in the process, to next “turn around New York,” according to his campaign website. His campaign focuses on “clean[ing] up Albany,” lowering taxes, and cracking down on the state’s intense crime rates.
Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-Long Island) has been representing New York’s 1st congressional district – eastern Long Island – since 2015. He previously practiced law and served in the U.S. Army. His vision for the state includes undoing bail reform, allocating resources to expand the police force, promoting fracking, reducing taxes, reforming the state government, ending COVID-19 mandates and more. Alison Esposito is Zeldin’s running mate on the Conservative Party line.
DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY FOR LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR
Ana María Archila is a fierce advocate for the rights of immigrants, working people, the LGBTQ+ community and women and causes, including improving access to high-quality education. She co-founded and led numerous grassroots organizations, including Make the Road New York, which began as the Staten Island branch of the Latin American Integration Center, and the Center for Popular Democracy. Archila is Jumaane Williams’ running mate on both the Democratic and Working Families Party lines. If elected, she would be the first Latina and first LGBTQ+ statewide official in New York.
Diana Reyna boasts more than two decades of experience in public service. From 2014-2017, she served as Brooklyn’s deputy borough president under now Mayor Eric Adams. In 2001, Reyna became the first Dominican American woman elected to public office in the state, serving the 34th district in the New York City Council. She continued representing Northern Brooklyn in the role through 2013. Reyna is Tom Suozzi’s running mate.
Antonio Delgado stepped into the role of lieutenant governor in May following Brian Benjamin’s resignation amid allegations of campaign funding fraud. Prior, he practiced law and then represented New York’s 19th congressional district for three years. Hochul appointed Delgado to his current role as well as her running mate to replace Benjamin. Delgado has been recognized for a particular dedication to bipartisan lawmaking. In 2021, he was named the fourth most bipartisan member in all of Congress and first among Democrats by the Common Ground Committee, and was honored twice with the Jefferson-Hamilton Award for Bipartisanship from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, according to his campaign website.
DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY FOR STATE ASSEMBLY, 61ST DISTRICT
Assemblymember Charles Fall (D-North Shore) is running for reelection to his seat, which he has held since 2019. He is the first Black Muslim to represent Staten Island in the State Assembly. Fall previously served as Staten Island borough director for former Mayor Bill de Blasio, as well as the Chief of Staff to the New York City Parks Borough Commissioner for Staten Island. Legislation that Fall has sponsored and successfully passed include policy to strengthen protections for minors from sex offenders, amending laws to enhance employee transparency, and protect access to urgent care facilities.
Justine Cuccia is a grassroots organizer based in Lower Manhattan, which became part of the 61st Assembly District following the redistricting this year. Cuccia’s issues of interest include public safety, affordable housing, gun control, access to the North Shore waterfront. She recently submitted an op-ed to the Advance/SILive.com sounding the alarm on abortion rights.
REPUBLICAN PRIMARY FOR STATE ASSEMBLY, 63RD DISTRICT
Lifelong Staten Islander Paul Ciurcina Jr. is a retired NYPD detective. The Medal of Honor recipient is attempting to take his fight for public safety from the streets of New York City up to Albany for a second time -- this time in the 63rd Assembly District. He unsuccessfully ran against Assemblymember Charles Fall (D-North Shore) for the 61st district seat in 2020. Ciurcina is passionate about “common-sense solutions,” “ending one party rule,” property tax reform and alleviating regulatory burdens on small businesses.
Sam Pirozzolo is a former president of the community education council for District 31 and operated a family owned optical practice for 33 years. He identifies as a strong advocate for law enforcement in favor of “refund[ing] the police.” Pirozzolo is vehemently opposed to the state’s current bail reform policies and has said he would repeal them, if elected, as part of his plan to address public safety issues. He is also passionate about improving the education system and ending COVID-19 mandates.
Due to mishaps with redistricting, New Yorkers will vote for the U.S. House of Representatives and New York State Senate seats on August 23.
Note the following deadlines for absentee ballots in the June primary.
Qualifications to vote via absentee ballot are as follows:
Click here for more information about applying for and casting an absentee ballot.
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