Rangel set for 23rd term after surviving primary challenge

The Associated Press has declared 22-term incumbent Rep. Charles Rangel the winner in his primary battle with state senator Adriano Espaillat in the race for the Democratic nomination for New York’s 13^th Congressional District.

With all of the precincts reporting, Rangel held roughly a 1,800-vote lead over the challenger, but Espaillat did not offer a concession, pinning his hopes on absentee ballots. New York election rules require ballots to be postmarked on Election Day, but are allowed a week to filter in to the Board of Elections. As of Wednesday morning, the district reported just under a thousand valid absentee ballots had been received.

Espaillat had entered the race with high expectations. The Dominican-American politician had come within 1,100 votes of defeating Rangel in 2012, and this time around had a host of prominent city endorsements and a district redrawn to include more Hispanic voters.

But Rangel, who is African American but also claims Puerto Rican heritage, tried to turn Espaillat’s perceived demographic edge on its head, saying throughout the campaign that his challenger had few qualifications for his seat, “besides saying he’s a Dominican.”

Rangel, who for years held a powerful position on the House Ways and Means Committee, was in turn criticized for being closer to Wall Street than to his district, which includes parts of Harlem, northern Manhattan and the South Bronx.

This race, however, saw a reinvigorated Rangel doing the sort of retail politics that decades ago allowed him to oust another powerful incumbent, Adam Clayton Powell. Hampered two years ago by health problems and an ethics investigation, Rangel stayed mostly out of campaign spotlight, the 84-year-old took the streets of his district in the last few weeks, making dozens of appearances on street corners, shaking hands and touting high-profile endorsements from the likes of NYC Public Advocate Tish James, Gov. Andrew Cuomo and former president Bill Clinton.

While Rangel seemed to find his footing on the stump, Espaillat stumbled. He was less polished in debates, and is said to have alienated blacks and Puerto Ricans with repeated references to the changing demographics of the district and his own Dominican roots.

The race was also influenced by two additional candidates, Michael Waldron, who garnered nearly 8 percent, or roughly 3,800 votes, and Yolanda Garcia, who brought in just over 1 percent.

With no Republican challenger, Rangel is all-but-assured a 23^rd term in the House.

Rangel, who declared victory late Tuesday night even before the election was called, has said this will be his last term in Congress, relaying that he told his wife Tuesday morning this will be the last time he ever votes for himself.