New York City's 43rd City Council district

New York City's 43rd City Council district
Government
• Councilmember	. Susan Zhuang . D–Bensonhurst
Population  (2020) [1]
• Total	161,059
Demographics
•  Asian	52%
•  White	29%
•  Hispanic	14%
•  Black	1%
• Other	2%
Registration
•  Democratic	50.4%
•  Republican	19.6%
• No party preference	25.9%
Registered voters (2021) 105,453 [2]

New York City's 43rd City Council district is one of 51 districts in the New York City Council. It has been represented by Democrat Susan Zhuang since 2024, succeeding Justin Brannan. ^[3]

Geography

2020s

District 43 is based largely in Bensonhurst and its outlying neighborhoods, including portions of Sunset Park and Dyker Heights and smaller areas in Bath Beach, Borough Park and Gravesend. A majority of the population is Asian, and in the run-up to the 2023 election, the district was marked as an "Asian-opportunity district". ^[4]

The district overlaps with Brooklyn Community Boards 7, 10, 11, 12, 13 and 15, and with New York's 8th, 9th, 10th and 11th congressional districts. It also overlaps with the 17th, 22nd and 23rd districts of the New York State Senate, and with the 45th, 47th, 48th, 49th, and 51st districts of the New York State Assembly. ^[5]

2010s

District 43 was based in Bay Ridge and other neighborhoods along Brooklyn's southwestern waterfront, including Dyker Heights, Bath Beach, and parts of Bensonhurst. ^[6] Dyker Beach Park and Golf Course was located within the district, as is Calvert Vaux Park.

The district overlapped with Brooklyn Community Boards 10, 11, and 13, and with New York's 10th and 11th congressional districts. It also overlapped with the 22nd and 23rd districts of the New York State Senate, and with the 46th, 47th, 49th, 51st, and 64th districts of the New York State Assembly. ^[7]

Members representing the district

Members	Party	Years served	Electoral history
District established January 1, 1992
Sal Albanese (Bay Ridge)	Democratic	January 1, 1992 – December 31, 1997	Redistricted from the 31st district and re-elected in 1991. Re-elected in 1993. Retired to run for Mayor of New York.
Marty Golden (Bay Ridge)	Republican	January 1, 1998 – December 31, 2002	Elected in 1997. Re-elected in 2001. Resigned when elected to the New York State Senate.
Vacant		December 31, 2002 – March 18, 2003
Vincent J. Gentile (Bay Ridge)	Democratic	March 18, 2003 – December 31, 2017	Elected to finish Golden's term. Re-elected in 2003. Re-elected in 2005. Re-elected in 2009. Re-elected in 2013. Termed out.
Justin Brannan (Bay Ridge)	Democratic	January 1, 2018 – December 31, 2023	Elected in 2017. Re-elected in 2021. Redistricted to the 47th district.
Susan Zhuang (Bensonhurst)	Democratic	January 1, 2024 –	Elected in 2023.

Recent election results

2023

An interactive map of District 43

Due to redistricting and the 2020 changes to the New York City Charter, councilmembers elected during the 2021 and 2023 City Council elections will serve two-year terms, with full four-year terms resuming after the 2025 New York City Council elections. ^[8] Primarily due to redistricting, Justin Brannan chose to run in the altered District 47.

2023 New York City Council election, District 43 ^{[9] [10] [11]}

Primary election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Susan Zhuang	2,126	58.5
	Democratic	Wai Yee Chan	1,127	31.0
	Democratic	Stanley Ng	347	9.6
	Write-in		32	0.9
Total votes			3,632	100.0
	Republican	Ying Tan	425	50.7
	Republican	Vito LaBella	394	47.0
	Write-in		19	2.3
Total votes			838	100.0
General election
	Democratic	Susan Zhuang	4,898	58.7
	Republican	Ying Tan	2,188	26.2
	Conservative	Vito LaBella	1,215	14.5
	Write-in		50	0.6
Total votes			8,351	100
	Democratic win (new boundaries)

2021

In 2019, voters in New York City approved Ballot Question 1, which implemented ranked-choice voting in all local elections. Under the new system, voters have the option to rank up to five candidates for every local office. Voters whose first-choice candidates fare poorly will have their votes redistributed to other candidates in their ranking until one candidate surpasses the 50 percent threshold. If one candidate surpasses 50 percent in first-choice votes, then ranked-choice tabulations will not occur. ^[12]

2021 New York City Council election, District 43 ^{[13] [14]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Justin Brannan	12,002
	Working Families	Justin Brannan	1,178
	Total	Justin Brannan (incumbent)	13,180	51.1
	Republican	Brian Fox	11,387
	Conservative	Brian Fox	1,192
	Total	Brian Fox	12,579	48.7
	Write-in		45	0.2
Total votes			25,804	100
	Democratic hold

2017

2017 New York City Council election, District 43 ^{[15] [16] [17]}

Primary election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Justin Brannan	3,670	38.7
	Democratic	Khader El-Yateem	2,932	30.9
	Democratic	Nancy Tong	1,504	15.8
	Democratic	Vincent Chirico	761	8.0
	Democratic	Kevin Carroll	604	6.4
	Write-in		21	0.2
Total votes			9,492	100
	Republican	John Quaglione	1,865	47.0
	Republican	Liam McCabe	1,318	33.2
	Republican	Bob Capano	579	14.6
	Republican	Lucretia Regina-Potter	182	4.6
	Write-in		23	0.6
Total votes			3,967	100
General election
	Democratic	Justin Brannan	11,812
	Working Families	Justin Brannan	1,082
	Total	Justin Brannan	12,894	50.2
	Republican	John Quaglione	10,127
	Conservative	John Quaglione	1,720
	Independence	John Quaglione	253
	Total	John Quaglione	12,100	47.1
	Reform	Bob Capano	344	1.3
	Women's Equality	Angel Medina	281	1.1
	Write-in		47	0.2
Total votes			25,667	100
	Democratic hold

2013

2013 New York City Council election, District 43 ^[18]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Vincent Gentile	12,415
	Working Families	Vincent Gentile	950
	Total	Vincent Gentile (incumbent)	13,365	62.8
	Republican	John Quaglione	5,813
	Conservative	John Quaglione	1,569
	Independence	John Quaglione	179
	Total	John Quaglione	7,561	35.5
	Green	Patrick Dwyer	349	1.6
	Write-in		21	0.1
Total votes			21,296	100
	Democratic hold

2009

2009 New York City Council election, District 43 ^[19]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Vincent Gentile	12,760
	Working Families	Vincent Gentile	1,119
	Total	Vincent Gentile (incumbent)	13,879	61.7
	Republican	Bob Capano	6,826
	Conservative	Bob Capano	1,211
	Independence	Bob Capano	578
	Total	Bob Capano	8,615	38.3
	Write-in		2	0.0
Total votes			22,496	100
	Democratic hold

References

1. "Census Demographics at the NYC City Council district (CNCLD) level". NYC Open Data. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
2. "Council District Summary Report" (PDF). New York City Board of Elections. February 21, 2021. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
3. "District 43 - Susan Zhuang". New York City Council. Retrieved January 4, 2024.
4. Samar Khurshid (January 24, 2023). "Race for New 'Asian Opportunity' Brooklyn City Council District Set to Take Off". Gotham Gazette. Retrieved February 26, 2024.
5. "NYC Boundaries Map". BetaNYC. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
6. "Council Members & Districts". New York City Council. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
7. "NYC Boundaries Map". BetaNYC. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
8. Pazmino, Gloria (January 15, 2020). "Why the Census Means NYC Lawmakers Will Serve 2-Year Terms Instead of 4". www.ny1.com. New York 1. Retrieved November 11, 2022.
9. "2023 Primary Official Ranked Choice Rounds, DEM Council Member 43rd Council District" (PDF). New York City Board of Elections. Retrieved July 21, 2023.
10. "2023 Primary Official Ranked Choice Rounds, REP Council Member 13th Council District" (PDF). New York City Board of Elections. Retrieved July 21, 2023.
11. "General Election 2023 - Member of the City Council, 43rd Council District" (PDF). New York City Board of Elections. Retrieved December 9, 2023.
12. Rachel Holliday Smith (January 18, 2021). "How Does Ranked Choice Voting Work in New York City?". The City. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
13. "Primary Contest List" (PDF). New York City Board of Elections. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
14. "General Election 2021 - Member of the City Council, 43rd Council District" (PDF). New York City Board of Elections. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
15. "Primary Election 2017 - Democratic Member of the City Council, 43rd Council District" (PDF). New York City Board of Elections. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
16. "Primary Election 2017 - Republican Member of the City Council, 43rd Council District" (PDF). New York City Board of Elections. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
17. "General Election 2017 - Member of the City Council, 43rd Council District" (PDF). New York City Board of Elections. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
18. "General Election 2013 - Member of the City Council, 43rd Council District" (PDF). New York City Board of Elections. Retrieved July 4, 2021.
19. "General Election 2009 - Member of the City Council, 43rd Council District" (PDF). New York City Board of Elections. Retrieved December 18, 2021.