Court to Step Into Rangel-Espaillat Vote Counting

Congressman Charles Rangel speaks to the media after declaring himself the winner in the race for the Democratic primary challenge in New York's 15th congressional district on June 26, in New York City. After a more than four-decades-long congressional career, Rangel fought for the Democratic nomination in a newly re-drawn congressional district that is no longer dominated by African Americans. The 82-year-old Rangel was locked in a race Tuesday for the nomination in his Harlem-area district with New York state Sen. Adriano Espaillat. Espaillat, a 57-year-old Dominican-American, showed growing popularity in a district that now has more Latino-Americans than African-Americans. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

NEW YORK—The New York State Supreme Court has agreed to intervene in the congressional race between Rep. Charles Rangel and state Sen. Adriano Espaillat, following the incumbent Rangel’s narrow win in the primary election Tuesday.

The decision came after Espaillat’s campaign accused the city Board of Elections for the apparent disappearance of dozens of election districts’ votes that some believe could alter the election outcome. Rangel’s victory margin is as low as 2.6 percentage points with just 1,032 votes separating the two men out of 38,506 votes cast. The hearing on the missing ballots and the election results will take place 2:30 p.m. Monday at the Manhattan Supreme Court.

“We are pleased with the court’s decision to hold a hearing on the Board of Elections’ proceedings,” 57-year-old Espaillat said in a statement. “Our campaign has not been allowed to adequately monitor the Board of Elections’ proceedings, as required by law. The Board of Elections continues to stonewall not only our campaign, but also the news media, which is particularly disturbing given that it blocks the free flow of information and transparency—the bedrock of our democratic system.”

After more than four decades in Congress and nearly 20 years for New York’s 15th Congressional District, 82-year-old Rangel, following his win Tuesday, gave thanks to his supporters, staff, and volunteers.

“Words cannot describe my overwhelming gratitude to the voters of the 13th Congressional District of our great state for believing me,” Rep. Rangel said.

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