The Queens Ledger’s online poll is now closed and a winner has been declared.
In a four-way race for the 37th Assembly District, which encompasses the Long Island City, Sunnyside, Woodside, Maspeth, and Ridgewood communities, Democratic candidate Juan Ardila has pulled ahead as the front-runner with 63 percent of the overall vote in our poll.
Ardila is a community advocate whose experience working with The Legal Aid Society and the Department of Education, has given him the foresight to help local constituents and the wherewithal to effectively delegate the expansion of universal Pre-K programs. While he is the more progressive of the bunch, his platform focus on housing, climate and healthcare aligns with the voting populace in the district.
Brent O’Leary, who pulled an early lead in the online poll, came in second with 20 percent of the vote. O’Leary is a moderate with an extensive resume as a civic leader in Long Island City. He is running on a platform that aims to increase community policing, maintain Mayoral control of city schools and create a system that would promote home ownership over more traditional forms of affordable housing.
Jim Magee, a defense attorney with a campaign focus on wealth disparity and revising the 2019 bail reform, came in third with 10 percent of the overall vote. Magee is the more conservative of the four, who has a local support base in the Sunnyside community.
Johanna Carmona, a young attorney who previously served as a Hispanic community liaison for outgoing Assemblywoman Cathy Nolan, polled just behind Magee with a 7 percent margin of the vote. A moderate like O’Leary, her campaign focuses on public safety, education and affordable housing.
With the Democratic Primary elections less than a week away, it appears Ardila is favored to win amongst the online polling community, but in the end it is up to local voters to show up at the polls on Tuesday, June 28, when they will have the opportunity to select one of the four candidates for New York State Assembly District 37.
