Democrat Luis Sepúlveda won a special election for a seat on the State Senate in the 32nd senatorial district last night, easily defeating his two challengers.

“Rezoning and gentrification are one and the same, and they cause displacement,” said a housing advocate from CASA: Community Action for Safe Apartments. “It hurts my heart to see my community members when they’re crying and have nowhere to go.”

Whoever wins the special election will hardly have time to get their seat warm. Another election will follow in the fall, for the two-year term that starts next January.

A citywide government program called Participatory Budgeting allows citizens to vote on how the local council member will spend part of his money – up to $1 million — in the district.

Reaction has been fierce in Mott Haven, where residents have said they will fight the city’s plan to build a jail on the site of an NYPD tow pound.

Borough president says new Bronx jail site must be decided locally In his State of the Borough address this afternoon, Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. kept Mayor Bill de Blasio on notice that he will stand firm against the city’s plan to build a new jail in Mott Haven withoutRead More

City Councilman Rafael Salamanca Jr. was named to chair the City Council’s influential Land Use Committee, where he will be responsible for working to shape zoning measures, development and affordable housing across the city.

Even though no Bronx Republican has won a seat on the New York City Council in two decades, the party’s candidates in the 8th and 17th Council districts are not giving up on tomorrow’s general election without a fight.