Dear Lucas,
Thank you. For your support, your hard work, and your generosity. For your belief in the power of government to help people, and in the possibility of something better than what we have now in Albany.
Together, we ran an incredible campaign. Supporters hosted dozens of get-togethers in living rooms up and down the 31st Senate District, campaigned more than 200 times in front of subway stations, gathered 8,000 petition signatures, and knocked on more than 20,000 doors. Progressive elected officials, organizations, labor unions, countless activists, and our extraordinary team worked so hard—and I am so, so grateful.
Unfortunately, we came up short. There has been some confusion about the results; here’s where things stand. Unofficial Board of Elections results put me in second place, down by 572 votes out of more than 25,000 cast. There are approximately 800 votes yet to be counted, which our analysis suggests will cut the deficit to around 300 votes. Incredibly close, but not victory.
Every vote should be counted, and that will happen over the next two weeks. But I do not believe the final outcome will change, and I congratulate Marisol Alcantara on her nomination.
I could not be more proud of the 100% positive, issues-based campaign we ran. We talked about better campaign finance laws and nonpartisan redistricting, saving affordable housing, supporting public schools and public higher education, and a wide range of other causes close to my heart and important to the residents of Northern Manhattan and the West Side.
Over the last several months, I would often tell voters that I was not presumptuous enough to believe that a single Senator could change Albany. It takes meaningful collaboration between citizen activists and committed public officials to drive real change—and it is long, hard work. That would have been true had I prevailed last night, and it is no less true today.
I hope that some of the energy that our campaign generated can persist in service of a better government, particularly for those who need it the most. I remain, as always, relentlessly optimistic about what’s possible.
With my deepest gratitude,
Micah