Democrat Micah Kellner won the special election to fill the Upper East Side Assembly seat vacated by Pete Grannis (who was appointed the Department of Environmental Conservation commissioner by Governor Spitzer). Kellner received about two-thirds of the vote over Republican opponent Gregory Camp.
Kellner is 28 and has been an aide to City Comptroller William Thompson. He was born with cerebral palsy and managed to overcome it, a fact that was featured heavily in campaign literature. Kellner's campaign manager told the Daily News, "One of the things that is unique about this district is there are a tremendous number of people with disabilities, and Micah Kellner is someone who has overcome disabilities"
Both Kellner and Camp are socially progressive, with gun control, pro-gay marriage, and pro-choice stances, but the 65th Assembly district is heavily Democratic; the NY Times says that ratio of Democrats to Republicans is 3 to 1. And another interesting footnote about Kellner: He's openly bisexual, a fact that wasn't mentioned in the Times but is in the Daily News and makes the headline of the NY Post article.





The Republicans ran a good candidate who received nearly every endorsement possible (mayor, Citizens Union, NY Times, NY Sun). The Republican candidate still lost by about 2-1.
Forget about a two-party system in New York City.
Aren't you glad that you'll be publicly financing these elections with a 6-1 public money match in the future?
So: a two-party system, in a city with a significant majority of residents who support one of these parties over the other. *What* exactly are you upset about?