Keith Powers Wins Dem Party Backing in Downtown Assembly Race
The date of the special election has not been set yet but it is expected to be held sometime in February and Keith Powers, city council member whose term expires at year end, will be the official Democratic party candidate in the race for the downtown’s NYS Assembly 74th district.
| 11 Dec 2025 | 07:19
Keith Powers at a press conference earlier this year, has secured the Democratic nomination for the Assembly seat vacated by Harvey Epstein when he ran and was elected to the City Council. Powers had the backing of 61 percent of the New York County Democratic club members who voted on Dec. 10. (
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City council member Keith Powers, whose term ends at the close of the year, will be the official Democratic party nominee in the special election to be held for the NYS Assembly seat in the 74th district in downtown Manhattan.
There is no primary ahead of the special election. Powers beat out three other candidates in the contest decided by votes of Democratic club members who reside in the district who voted in an election with 168 voting members held by the New York County Democratic Committee held at Sirovich Hall in the East Village.
“After one round of voting by the 168 County Committee Members present, Councilman Keith Powers achieved 61% of the vote,” said Democratic party chairman Kyle Ishmael. “We congratulate state assembly Democratic nominee Keith Powers and thank each county committee member, district leader, member of the public who engaged in this process, and especially the nominated candidates—honorable public servants from their community who included: Sarah Batchu, district leader Marquis Jenkins, and Kevin O’Keefe.”
By nailing down the nomination in the heavily democratic district, Powers is the overwhelming favorite to win the special election expected to be held sometime in Feb.
“I am deeply honored to be the Democratic nominee for the district that I’ve called my home throughout my life,” said Powers, who had run for borough president in the Democratic primary but lost to the eventual winner, NYS Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal. “A very big thank you to all my neighbors, friends and supporters that showed up to make this happen.”
The special election will be to fill out the remainder of the term of Harvey Epstein, who resigned to run and win a race for City Council. In the poll held on Dec. 10, Powers was nominated by Epstein and Charles Sturken, a local committee man. Jenkins, a housing activist on the lower east side, was in second place with 15 percent of the ballots cast, followed by Sarah Batchu, a former DeBlasio staffer and a non profit activist, with 14 percent of the vote and Kevin O’Keefe a community board 6 member and head of the St. Vartan’s Park Conservancy, who tallied 9.4 percent of the vote. The winner of the special election will fill out the remainder of the two year term that runs through the end of 2026. Epstein ran unopposed when he ran for reelection to his Assembly seat in November 2024. Because the City Council seat was open following the resignation of Carlina Rivera in August, Epstein was officially sworn in on Dec. 4. The 74th Assembly district includes the lower east side above Chinatown, the East Village and Loisida, mid-town East including Stuyvesant Town/Peter Cooper Village, Union Square, Kips Bay, Murray Hill and the eastern portion of Greenwich Village as well as portions of Times Square.
The winner of the special election will have to stand for election again next year. There is a primary that could attract new and old rivals in June. Several candidates had indicated they were not going to stand in the special election race but would enter a primary next year. The general election is scheduled for November 3.