When the numbers were finally and officially tallied a little over a week ago, Anthony Como had won a special election for a City Council seat by a mere 41 votes. Mr. Como’s razor-thin victory in a four-candidate race is not only a triumph for him, but also a victory that brings bragging rights for the Queens County Republican Party’s leadership.
Mr. Como, 34, won the seat vacated by Dennis P. Gallagher, a Republican. Mr. Gallagher resigned in April after he pleaded guilty to two misdemeanors, admitting that he sexually abused a woman in his district office last summer while he was intoxicated.
For Mr. Como and fellow Republican Party leaders, the victory on June 13 — when he was certified by the New York City Board of Elections after 10 days of recounting — was particularly sweet on a number of levels. For one thing, it was a closely contested race in which the Democrats had hoped to gain an additional seat. Beyond that, Mr. Como’s closest rival, Elizabeth Crowley, is the cousin of the Queens Democratic Party chairman, United States Representative Joseph Crowley.
And in winning, Mr. Como triumphed over a rival faction within the Republican Party. In the special election, he prevailed against Thomas V. Ognibene, a former City Councilman, who was once at the center of power within the Republican Party in Queens.
A special election is different from a primary race. It is nonpartisan, meaning that candidates are forbidden from using the names of established political parties. However, political parties are often behind-the-scenes players in such races. And both the Republicans and the Democrats focused on the race in Queens.
The district includes the moderate to conservative voting neighborhoods of Middle Village, Ridgewood and Glendale.
For now, Mr. Como said he was content just to keep the seat within the Republican fold (he is one of the three Republicans in the 51-member City Council). But he said that his party designation would not be a handicap in the Council’s chambers.
“I’m the newest Council member, but I’m not at all crippled by being new or being in the minority,” Mr. Como said in an interview in his district office in Middle Village.
“The entire Queens delegation has welcomed me,” he said. “I have met with almost every member of the delegation, the speaker and minority leader. We’ve already worked together on the budget and issues that affect my district. I don’t think people in the Council look at you as a Democrat or Republican.”
Nonetheless, Mr. Como has a long history of working with the Republican leaders in the borough. He is a former Queens prosecutor and commissioner with the City Board of Elections and was a longtime aide to State Senator Serphin R. Maltese, who represents District 15.
His victory was not determined on election night when he led Ms. Crowley by just 70 votes; those results did not include nearly 200 absentee ballots that had not yet been tallied. After a week of recounting ballots and machine totals, the margin narrowed. Mr. Como won.
“I am absolutely thrilled that we won one,” said Philip Ragusa, chairman of the Queens Republican organization. “We had two prominent Republicans in the same race. And I think Tom Ognibene took away more votes from Como than from Crowley.”
Mr. Como’s victory has energized Republican leaders in Queens, Mr. Ragusa said, and it has bolstered their confidence in the various State Assembly and Senate races this year.
“We’re running candidates in different parts of Queens, and we have some good people who will be on the ballot,” he said. “But, our main focus is to hold on to the State Senate and to work hard for Serph Maltese and Frank Padavan.”
In addition to Mr. Maltese, the Democrats are looking to defeat State Senator Frank Padavan, who represents District 11, in their effort to win back control of that chamber (they are two seats from winning the majority).
But the Democrats say they have their best opportunity in years to defeat both Queens Republican senators, pointing to the party’s voter registration advantage in both Senate districts. Also, Democratic leaders add, there are well-known candidates for both districts, including City Council members.
Still, Mr. Ragusa said, the election of Mr. Como indicates that Republicans remain vital in Queens.
“Our candidates feel a great deal of enthusiasm, especially after they’ve now seen someone from the party win this Council race,” he said. “So, without question, we’re hitting the ground running.”
