Hoylman concedes to Levine in borough president election

BY THE VILLAGE SUN | Brad Hoylman ran an earnest and spirited campaign for Manhattan borough president and voters responded by the tens of thousands. But it wasn’t quite enough.

On Sunday, Hoylman threw in the towel in his bid to be the borough’s next B.P.

Out of a crowded field of seven candidates in the Democratic primary election, after the ranked-choice voting process, it came down to Hoylman and Mark Levine.

In the end, Levine, a northern Manhattan city councilmember, wound up with 54 percent of the vote versus 46 for the state senator from Greenwich Village.

Meanwhile, Hoylman remains in office as a state senator, where he chairs the Judiciary Committee, after having won election last year to another two-year term.

In an e-mail to supporters on Sunday, Hoylman said, in part, “At this point, it seems we’ve come up short in my election for Manhattan Borough President. But we ran a campaign to be proud of.

“I’m proud to have run on my record in the state Senate, as well as raising important issues during the campaign, such as creating a tenants union to combat the looming eviction crisis, pushing for community-led rezonings, screening public school kids for dyslexia, and ensuring our new marijuana laws benefit the communities hardest hit by the war on drugs. As a New York State senator, I’m committed to continue to fight for these goals and others as we emerge from the pandemic.”

Hoylman noted he has spoken with Levine to offer him his congratulations and support as the next borough president. He said he looks forward to working with Levine in the future, as well as with all the other candidates who ran in the race.

“On a personal note,” Hoylman added. “I’m especially thankful to my wonderful husband David and our two precious daughters, Silvia (our TV star featured in my campaign ad!) and Lucy. Every campaign — every fight — is to build a brighter future for kids like them.”