By Joshua Miller
Roll Call (July 9, 2012)
State Sen. Adriano Espaillat, seen here campaigning last month, conceded again to Rep. Charlie Rangel today, bringing the contentious primary officially to a close. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)
New York State Sen. Adriano Espaillat (D), the top rival to Rep. Charlie Rangel in a bitter and closely contested primary, today conceded the race for the second time.
Espaillat also said he was dropping a lawsuit regarding the vote-counting in the June 26 race. On Election Day, it appeared Rangel had won by a wide margin, but further counting of ballots found the race to be much closer.
“My attorneys have advised me … that the math just doesn’t work. It’s virtually impossible for the results to change,” Espaillat said at a press conference today, according to a tweet from the New York Observer.
Espaillat’s decision brings the lengthy and sometimes-nasty drama of the Democratic primary to a close.
The Harlem- and Bronx-based district is overwhelmingly Democratic. Rangel should breeze to winning his 22nd and likely final term in November.