Lynn Schulman Named Winner In Forest Hills' City Council Race

FOREST HILLS, QUEENS — Lynn Schulman will become the next City Council Member representing Forest Hills, according to NY1 and the New York Times.

With about 78 percent of precincts reporting, Schulman has won 59 percent of the vote, cementing her win against Michael Conigliaro, the sole candidate who ran as a Republican in the district, both outlets reported. Based on these predictions she will take office at the beginning of 2022 for a two-year Council term, not four years, because of a city mandate to allow for redistricting after the census.

Going into the general election, Schulman was favored to succeed term-limited Council Member Karen Koslowitz given the district's blue electorate, but the race was still tied up as Election Day came to a close.

To keep up-to-date with news from Forest Hills, sign up for Patch's newsletters and breaking news alerts.

Schulman, however, seemed to remain confident: on election night, she shared a post from the LGBTQ Victory Fund announcing that all of the group's candidates won their elections — Schulman included. She hasn't issued a public statement about her projected victory.

Her primary campaign was also not uncontested; while the attorney and city employee was widely regarded as the moderate front-runner throughout the primary, activist and non-profit leader Aleda Gagarin drummed up considerable support from progressive leaders and individuals throughout the city.

Schulman was self assured though, and told Patch that her detailed healthcare platform, and time spent working in city government, gave her an edge in the field; a point that ultimately proved true.

She continued to champion healthcare issues after the primary, too — last week the Democratic nominee shared that a breast cancer diagnosis last summer further revealed to her the inequities of the healthcare system, which she hopes to address on the Council.

"My journey magnified the struggles women and others face in our broken healthcare system. I look forward to fixing these disparities as a member of the city's 1st majority female Council," she wrote on Twitter.

The race for City Council isn't the only one that neighbors in Forest Hills voted on this Election Day: locals also weighed in on the race to replace Mayor Bill de Blasio, the Queens Borough President race, and five ballot measures.

Find out more about these races, and all the ones that Patch is following, here.