Bronx native and incumbent Ritchie Torres celebrated his fourth-consecutive congressional win Tuesday evening at Michaelangelo’s Restaurant on Arthur Ave, following a divisive race between himself and opponents Michael Blake and Jose Vega.
Torres was congratulated by a cheering crowd full of constituents, friends, family, and political peers.
Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson introduced Torres, whom she previously worked with on the New York City Council.
“I’ve seen the work that Ritchie has done. I’ve seen him show up for our community and deliver results for the people of this district. That’s not just talent, but that is a purpose,” Gibson said.
Torres joked that he expected to win the race, but was honored to receive over 70% of the vote. He received over 23,000 votes in the Democratic primary for NY-15.
“I live by the commandment of ‘love thy neighbor. And there are forces in our politics who want us to hate our neighbor, to fear our neighbor, to blame our neighbor, to be divided against our neighbor. Tonight, the people of the Bronx have spoken. The people, the Bronx, have chosen love over hate,” Torres said.
Aside from Gibson, Torres thanked former speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, New York State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, “future House speaker” Hakeem Jeffries, Bronx Democratic Party Chair Jamaal Bailey and Assembly members John Zaccaro, George Alvarez, Jeffrey Dinowitz and Chantel Jackson for their support. Torres also thanked City Council members Althea Stevens, Kevin Riley, Oswald Feliz and Eric Dinowitz.
Gibson – whom Torres deemed his “favorite” of his many allies – later said “Unfortunately, politics sometimes brings out the very worst of people, and I’m very glad, not only did Richie win, but he won big. He kicked butt and he deserves to win.”
Despite the allusions to the heated race and Torres’ opposition, the crowd included various community members from different backgrounds who were joyous to see Torres win re-election.
“Ritchie Torres has been very pro-Israel, and that really reflects with my values for the Jewish community,” and proclaimed excitement for “all the good change that guy can bring to the Bronx,” Jed, an intern for Torres’ campaign, said.
Thurito Martinez and Gregoria Flores gathered over 35 Garifuna individuals to volunteer in support of Torres. In 2023, Torres co-created the US Garifuna Caucus, which he continues to chair.
“For him to take us into account, bring us to Washington and bring the Garifuna flight to to the federal government, that is a big thing,” Martinez said.
Mail-carrier Maria Cambero said she’s been delivering Torres’ campaign flyers for a while now and was confident he would win, seeing so many people rallying for him.
“Once he changes, everything goes down, but knowing Ritchie Torres, our congressman – Yay! – He’s definitely going to continue being as great as he always is,” Cambero said.
Borough President Gibson, who won her bid for re-election last year, added that though tourism and economic development are two priorities of her new term, she’s looking forward to working with Torres on healthcare and housing.
“We need more investment in [the] New York City Housing Authority, which is still unregulated housing. It’s the largest concentration of affordable housing that we represent in the US. Ritchie has the ability to lead that effort and I want to be there to support,” Gibson said.
As the event winded down, Torres said a specific issue he hopes to work on in the coming years is affordability.
“The cost of housing, the cost of utilities, the cost of insurance. We need to use every tool at our disposal to drive down costs for everyday Bronx families.”
“Elective office is not a property right. It does not belong to the elected officials. It belongs to the people. And it’s something that has to be earned every day and I’m going to work my heart out to earn the votes of those who voted for me and those who did not,” Torres said to all his constituents.
Maurice Burbridge is an intern at the Bronx Times. He can be reached at mburbridge@schnepsmedia.com. For more coverage, subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram!
