Bayside District 19 Council Race: Avella vs. GOP Choice Paladino

BAYSIDE, QUEENS — When voters in Bayside cast ballots in the general election they will see three names on the ballot for the 19th District City Council seat, which encompasses College Point, Whitestone, Malba, Bayside, Douglaston, Little Neck, North Flushing, and Auburndale.

One is Tony Avella, a former state senator who beat a field of five other Democrats this summer, becoming the party's nominee to succeed term-limited City Council Member Paul Vallone. His Republican opponent is business owner and activist Vickie Paladino, who secured the GOP nomination in a primary race against John-Alexander Sakelos. Sakelos, however, is still running on the Conservative party line.

Avella is favored in the Nov. 2 general election given the district's growing blue electorate, which conforms with most of New York City.

His primary campaign, however, was not uncontested; two other Democrats, Richard Lee and Austin Shafran led the district's fundraising and endorsement race for the weeks leading up to the election.

Avella remained confident though, and told Patch that his time as a politician — most recently as a State Senator representing northeast Queens — gave him an edge in a field of first-time political hopefuls; a point that ultimately proved true.

"Experience matters. None of the other candidates have ever served in public office, nor do they have my extensive knowledge and experience in City and State government or knowledge of the district," he told Patch regarding what differentiates him from other candidates.

Avella's campaign centers on COVID-recovery, expanding the city's recently-eliminated gifted and talented programs, and maintaining the suburban-nature of the district, namely including one and two-family homes.

While his platform includes measures to promote his vision of neighborhood safety — he opposes defunding the police and wants to see a new precinct created out of the 109th Precinct — Paladino and Sakelos are both running semi-exclusively crime-focused campaigns. The two see eye-to-eye on some of the major issues on locals' minds, too, Patch reported.

When asked about the most pressing issues in the district Paladino said, "public safety," adding, "nothing else matters policy-wise if crime continues to spiral out of control and people are scared in their own neighborhoods."

Sakelos similarly responded that crime is the biggest issue facing District 19. "If you fix the crime problems the other issues we face (mainly concerning our economic state and quality of life) will fall into line," he told Patch.

Paladino, however, narrowly edged out Sakelos for the Republican nomination, possibly in-part because of her name recognition: she's joined forces throughout the campaign with Republican mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa.

Early voting for the general election, which runs from Oct. 23rd through 31st, is already off to a slow start. Voters can find their poll site and view a sample ballot on the Board of Elections website.

To learn more about each candidate, read the Patch candidate profiles of Tony Avella, Vickie Paladino, and John-Alexander Sakelos, or visit each candidate's website. (Avella, Paladino, Sakelos.)