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The Mystery of the 1,001 Mayoral Votes for a Comedian in the Bronx
The Atlantic:We know that New York Public Advocate Bill de Blasio came from behind (way behind) to garner the most votes in yesterday's Democratic primary for mayor, and with 98 percent of precincts reporting, we know he captured roughly 40 percent of the vote to Bill Thompson's 26 percent. Randy Credico, a longtime comedian-turned-longshot mayoral candidate, barely registered: he got just about 2 percent of the vote, or 13,666 votes throughout the city. So why is a tiny district of the Bronx showing a drastically different story? And could it matter?
Here, take a look at Election District 80-079 for yourself, via The New York Times' interactive voting map. That's up in Norwood by the Bronx River Parkway, encompassing East 206th and 207th Streets. It's pink, which means it went for Credico, which means it's easy to spot. See it?
As the map would have you believe, Credico captured 1,001 votes in the district ahead of second-place de Blasio's 36. That's 90.8 percent of District 80-079, which is astounding, but also a staggering turnout for one tiny district in the Bronx. In bordering district 80-083, just 126 votes were recorded; in neighboring 80-080, a meager 72. Credico received no votes in either district. Hmm.
...snip...
So: does it matter? That depends, of course, on whether or not de Blasio tops the 40 percent he needs to steer clear of a runoff election with Thompson. Right now, in the latest AP tally with 98 percent of votes counted, de Blasio has 40.17 percent of the vote. As paper and absentee ballots are added to the tally, that number could slip. But, as the Wire's Philip Bump calculated for me, if the 1,001 Credico votes are an error and the total number of votes cast was reduced by that amount, de Blasio's percentage would creep up 0.06 percent. That's very little, but if de Blasio lands really, really, really close to 40 percent—well, then the mystery of District 80-079 could come into play.
Here, take a look at Election District 80-079 for yourself, via The New York Times' interactive voting map. That's up in Norwood by the Bronx River Parkway, encompassing East 206th and 207th Streets. It's pink, which means it went for Credico, which means it's easy to spot. See it?
As the map would have you believe, Credico captured 1,001 votes in the district ahead of second-place de Blasio's 36. That's 90.8 percent of District 80-079, which is astounding, but also a staggering turnout for one tiny district in the Bronx. In bordering district 80-083, just 126 votes were recorded; in neighboring 80-080, a meager 72. Credico received no votes in either district. Hmm.
...snip...
So: does it matter? That depends, of course, on whether or not de Blasio tops the 40 percent he needs to steer clear of a runoff election with Thompson. Right now, in the latest AP tally with 98 percent of votes counted, de Blasio has 40.17 percent of the vote. As paper and absentee ballots are added to the tally, that number could slip. But, as the Wire's Philip Bump calculated for me, if the 1,001 Credico votes are an error and the total number of votes cast was reduced by that amount, de Blasio's percentage would creep up 0.06 percent. That's very little, but if de Blasio lands really, really, really close to 40 percent—well, then the mystery of District 80-079 could come into play.
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