2015 New York's 11th congressional district special election explained

Election Name:	2015 New York's 11th congressional district special election
Country:	New York
Flag Image:	Flag of New York (1909–2020).svg
Type:	by-election
Seats For Election:	New York's 11th congressional district
Ongoing:	no
Previous Election:	2014 United States House of Representatives elections in New York#District 11
Previous Year:	2014
Next Election:	2016 United States House of Representatives elections in New York#District 11
Next Year:	2016
Election Date:	May 5, 2015
Image1:	File:Dan Donovan official photo.jpg
Nominee1:	Dan Donovan
Party1:	Republican Party (United States)
Alliance1:	Conservative / Independence
Popular Vote1:	24,797
Percentage1:	58.3%
Nominee2:	Vincent J. Gentile
Party2:	Democratic Party (United States)
Alliance2:	Working Families Party
Popular Vote2:	17,049
Percentage2:	40.1%
Map Size:	230px
U.S. Representative
Before Election:	Michael Grimm
Before Party:	Republican Party (United States)
After Election:	Dan Donovan
After Party:	Republican Party (United States)

A special election for New York's 11th congressional district was held on May 5, 2015, to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Michael Grimm. Grimm, a member of the Republican Party, announced on December 30, 2014, that he would resign from the House effective January 5, 2015, and not take his seat for a third term following his guilty plea for tax evasion. On May 5, 2015, Republican candidate Dan Donovan defeated his Democratic challenger Vincent Gentile in the election and filled the vacant seat.^[1]

Background

In April 2014, Grimm was indicted on twenty felony charges, including mail and wire fraud, perjury, obstruction of justice, employing illegal immigrants, and conspiring to defraud the United States after it was found that he under-reported revenues and employee wages relating to a restaurant he owned. He surrendered to the police and was released on $400,000 bail.^[2] Vowing his innocence, Grimm continued his campaign for reelection,^[3] and defeated Domenic Recchia, the Democratic Party nominee, by 53%, Grimm's highest margin in his congressional career.^[4]

On December 23, 2014, Grimm pleaded guilty to one charge of felony tax evasion. All other charges were dropped as part of the plea bargain.^{[5] [6]} Grimm indicated that he would not resign his seat.^[7] However, on December 30, Grimm announced that he would resign from Congress on January 5, 2015, rather than be sworn in for his elected term.^{[8] [9]} According to the U.S. Constitution (I.2.iv), Governor Andrew Cuomo is legally required to call a special election to fill the seat, which under the terms of the New York Constitution is to be held within 70 to 80 days of his announcement.^[10] On February 2, Cuomo, who had given no indication of when he would call the special election for, said that he was "looking at it now" but didn't have a timeframe for setting a date.^[11] Staten Island Attorney Ronald Castorina Jr. filed a lawsuit on behalf of 8 Plaintiffs from Brooklyn and Staten Island, Republicans, Democrats, Independents, and Non-Enrolled parties, to force Cuomo to call a special election^[12] and on February 17, Judge Jack B. Weinstein of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York ordered Cuomo to either schedule the election or explain why he was delaying, or he would schedule the election himself.^[13] Cuomo's office replied that he would "announce the date" for the special election "shortly".^[14] On February 20, Cuomo announced that the election would be held on May 5.^[15]

As it was a special election, primary elections did not occur. The nominees were selected by local party leaders in Brooklyn and Staten Island .^[16]

Republican nomination

Candidates

Nominated

• Dan Donovan, Staten Island District Attorney and nominee for New York Attorney General in 2010^{[17] [18] [19]}

Declined

• Vito Fossella, former U.S. Representative^[20]
• Nicole Malliotakis, state assemblywoman^{[21] [22]}

Democratic nomination

Candidates

Nominated

• Vincent J. Gentile, New York City Councilman^[23]

Not nominated

• Amber Adler, community advocate^[24]
• Lorie Honor, businesswoman^[25]
• Arne Mattsson, nominee for the 13th congressional district in 2002^[26]
• Carlo Scissura, president of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce^[27]
• John Sollazzo, vice chairman of the Staten Island Democratic Committee^[28]

Declined

• William Colton, state assemblyman^[29]
• Michael Cusick, state assemblyman^{[30] [31]}
• Robert Holst, electrician and middle class advocate^[32]
• Michael McMahon, former U.S. Representative^[33]

Third parties

Besides the Democratic and Republican parties, the Conservative, Green, Independence, Reform, Women's Equality and Working Families parties are qualified New York parties. Under the terms of electoral fusion, a candidate may be nominated by multiple parties.

Conservative

Nominated

• Dan Donovan, Staten Island District Attorney and Republican nominee for New York Attorney General in 2010^[34]

Declined

• Nicole Malliotakis, state assemblywoman^[35]
• James Molinaro, former Staten Island Borough President^{[36] [37]}

Green

Nominated

• James Lane, Internet media professional and nominee for New York City Public Advocate in 2013^[38] He is a member of the Adoptee Rights, Black Lives Matter and Stop Mass Incarceration movements. His current titles include: director of analytics & implementation, GroupM and editor-in-chief, Hot Indie News

Independence

Nominated

• Dan Donovan, Staten Island District Attorney and Republican nominee for New York Attorney General in 2010^[39]

Not nominated

• Robert McKenna, retired New York City Police Lieutenant^[40]

Declined

• Nicole Malliotakis, state assemblywoman^[35]

Reform

• No nominee. Presumptive nominee Dan Donovan refused the line after pressure from the Conservative Party.^[41]

Working Families

Nominated

• Vincent J. Gentile, New York City Councilman^[42]

General election

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
align=left	The Cook Political Report^[43]		April 3, 2015
align=left	Inside Elections^[44]		January 28, 2015
align=left	Sabato's Crystal Ball^[45]		January 5, 2015

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	class=small	Sample size	class=small	Margin of error	Dan Donovan (R)	Michael Cusick (D)	Other	Undecided
Global Strategy Group ^[46]	January 16–18, 2015	404	± 4.9%	align=center	48%	28%	—	24%

• * Poll commissioned by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee

Finance Reports

Campaign Finance Reports through April 15
Candidate	Raised	Spent	Cash on Hand	Debt
	Vincent Gentile		$195,724		$79,697		$116,026		$0
	Dan Donovan		$614,775		$152,533		$461,781		$120,760
	James Lane		$11,095		$3,567		$7,527		$0
Source: OpenSecrets^[47]

County results

Vote breakdown by county

	Dan Donovan Republican		Vincent Gentile Democrat		James Lane Green		Write-in Write-in		Total
County	Votes	%	Votes	%	Votes	%	Votes	%	Votes
Kings (Brooklyn)	3,570	37.74%	5,745	60.73%	130	1.37%	15	0.16%	9,460
Richmond (Staten Island)	21,227	64.23%	11,304	34.20%	437	1.32%	81	0.25%	33,049

See also

• List of special elections to the United States House of Representatives

External links

• Vincent Gentle for Congress
• Dan Donovan for Congress

Notes and References

1. Web site: Donovan Wins Race for House Seat Grimm Vacated, A.P. Says. The New York Times. Alexander Burns. May 5, 2015. May 5, 2015.
2. Web site: Grimm, Staten Island Lawmaker, Is Charged With Fraud. The New York Times. Stephanie Clifford. April 28, 2014. January 2, 2015.
3. Web site: Under Indictment, Grimm Fights to Keep His Congressional Seat. Jason Horowitz. The New York Times. October 14, 2014. January 2, 2015.
4. Web site: Michael Grimm Overcomes Democrats' Campaign to Capture His Congressional Seat. Jason Horowitz. The New York Times. November 4, 2014. January 2, 2015.
5. News: Rep. Grimm pleads guilty to felony count of tax evasion. New York Daily News. December 23, 2014.
6. Web site: Grimm Stipulation of Facts.. January 2, 2015.
7. Web site: Rep. Michael Grimm apologizes for tax evasion, but vows to stay in office. December 24, 2014. January 2, 2015.
8. Web site: Michael Grimm to resign from Congress: sources. NY Daily News. December 30, 2014.
9. Web site: Michael Grimm To Resign From Congress. The Huffington Post. December 30, 2014.
10. Web site: What happens after Rep. Michael Grimm resigns -- from special election to sentencing. Staten Island Advance. Rachel Shapiro . December 30, 2014. January 4, 2015.
11. Web site: Andrew Cuomo Still Won't Set a Date for Election to Replace Michael Grimm. Ross Barkan. The New York Observer. February 2, 2015. February 4, 2015.
12. Web site: Lawsuit looks to force Gov. Andrew Cuomo to set special election for Congress. Rachel Shapiro. SILive.com. February 5, 2015. February 9, 2015.
13. Web site: Federal judge orders Gov. Andrew Cuomo to set a date for special congressional election. John M. Annese. SILive.com. February 17, 2015. February 18, 2015.
14. Web site: Cuomo's office says special election announcement will happen 'shortly,' but doesn't specify timeline. John M. Annese. SILive.com. February 17, 2015. February 18, 2015.
15. Web site: Cuomo Schedules New York Special Election (Updated). Emily Cahn. Roll Call. February 20, 2015. April 18, 2015.
16. Web site: The Wildest Story In The Republican Party Right Now. December 23, 2014. Business Insider. December 30, 2014.
17. Web site: District Attorney Daniel Donovan emerges as GOP front-runner for seat in Congress. December 30, 2014. SILive. January 7, 2015.
18. Web site: Staten Island DA Daniel Donovan announces bid for Congress. December 30, 2014. SILive. January 10, 2015.
19. Web site: District Attorney Daniel Donovan selected as GOP candidate for Staten Island congressional seat. January 10, 2015. SILive. January 10, 2015.
20. Web site: Former Congressman Vito Fossella doesn't want his old seat back. December 30, 2014. SILive. December 30, 2014.
21. Web site: Malliotakis to Catsimatidis: 'I'm inclined' to run for Michael Grimm's Congressional seat. January 5, 2015. SILive. January 7, 2015.
22. Web site: Malliotakis backs Donovan for Congress. January 12, 2015. Capital New York. January 13, 2015.
23. Web site: Staten Island Democrats select Vincent Gentile as candidate for Congress. Staten Island Advance. Rachel Shapiro. February 27, 2015. March 2, 2015.
24. Web site: Another Brooklyn Democrat emerges as a possible candidate for empty seat in Congress. Staten Island Advance. Rachel Shapiro. February 16, 2015. February 18, 2015.
25. Web site: Staten Island Democrats will interview potential candidates for Congress Feb. 11. SILive. February 2, 2015. February 9, 2015.
26. Web site: Staten Island Democrats interview three people but still have no candidate for Congress. Staten Island Advance. Rachel Shapiro. February 11, 2015. February 18, 2015.
27. Web site: Grimm resignation fires up speculation on replacement. Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Paula Katinas. December 29, 2014. January 8, 2015.
28. Web site: 'Mr. Democrat' John Sollazzo wants to run for Congress on Staten Island. Staten Island Advance. Rachel Shapiro. February 13, 2015. February 18, 2015.
29. Web site: Brooklyn Assemblyman William Colton bows out of race for Congress. Staten Island Advance. Rachel Shapiro. February 23, 2015. February 23, 2015.
30. Web site: Assemblyman Michael Cusick 'still looking' at run for Congress. December 30, 2014. SILive. January 7, 2015.
31. Web site: Assemblyman Michael Cusick announces he is not running for Congress. January 25, 2015. SILive. January 26, 2015.
32. Web site: Robert Holst bows out of Congress race; leaves Vincent Gentile as lone Democrat. Staten Island Advance. Rachel Shapiro. February 23, 2015. February 23, 2015.
33. Web site: Sources: Seddio backs Colton for special election. Capital New York. Colby Hamilton. February 13, 2015. February 18, 2015.
34. Web site: DA Daniel Donovan gets nod from Brooklyn Conservatives in congressional race. Staten Island Advance. Rachel Shapiro. January 20, 2015. January 21, 2015.
35. Web site: Nicole Malliotakis: Daniel Donovan 'would be a good voice for us in Washington'. Staten Island Advance. Rachel Shapiro. January 13, 2015. January 21, 2015.
36. Web site: Calling it 'very tempting,' former Borough President James Molinaro considers run for Congress. December 31, 2014. SILive. December 31, 2014.
37. Web site: 'I'm not interested': Former Borough President James Molinaro decides not to run for Congress. January 2, 2015. SILive. January 5, 2015.
38. Web site: Brooklynite James Lane emerges as Green Party candidate for Congress in 11th district. Staten Island Advance. Rachel Shapiro. March 3, 2015. March 3, 2015.
39. Web site: Independence Party backs Daniel Donovan for Congress. Staten Island Advance. Rachel Shapiro. March 2, 2015. March 2, 2015.
40. Web site: Dark horses and off-Islanders: Meet more people who want Michael Grimm's old seat in Congress. Staten Island Advance. Anna Sanders. January 7, 2015. January 8, 2015.
41. Lovett, Ken (March 9, 2015). Dan Donovan ignores Reform Party at Conservative Party chair's request. New York Daily News. Retrieved March 9, 2015.
42. Web site: Gentile Receives WFP Nod. State of Politics. Nick Reisman. March 3, 2015. March 3, 2015.
43. News: House Special Election Updates: IL-18, MS-01 and NY-11 . Dave Wasserman . April 3, 2015 . January 2, 2022 .
44. Web site: Democrats Looking Beyond New York 11 Special Election. The Rothenberg Political Report. January 28, 2015. January 4, 2022.
45. Web site: Kondik. Kyle. NY-11 Special: Republicans Well-Positioned to Hold One of Nation’s Most Distinctive Districts. January 5, 2015. January 5, 2022.
46. http://www.capitalnewyork.com/sites/default/files/DCCC%20NY-11%20Viability%20Survey-Topline%20F01.19.15.pdf Global Strategy Group*
47. http://www.opensecrets.org/races/summary.php?id=VAS2&cycle=2014 Open Secrets | Elections | U.S. Senate