Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins defeated Republican Christine Sculti in a special election on Tuesday to occupy the position he was appointed to last month until the end of the year.
Unofficial results from approximately 80% of election districts showed the Jenkins leading by 64%-36%, a 28-point advantage, according to an unofficial tally posted on the Board of Elections website (see below). The special election had Jenkins and Sculti competing to complete the vacant term of Jenkins’ predecessor, George Latimer, who resigned in January after seven years as county executive to take up a House seat he won in November.
Sculti, who lost to Latimer in the general election in 2021, was an advisor to former county executive Rob Astorino. She has also served as chair and CEO of the Westchester County Taxi & Limousine Commission and as assistant to the Yonkers mayor, along with holding several other posts. She was endorsed by President Donald Trump to no avail.
Flanked by Governor Kathy Hochul, Westchester County Democratic Committee Chair Suzanne Berger, his wife and the mayors of Yonkers, Mount Vernon, and White Plains, Jenkins delivered his victory address (see video below) around 10 pm to an excited crowd of supporters at Kanopi in White Plains. He praised his new administration’s goals and contrasted them sharply with the three-week-old Trump administration.
Jenkins who made history as Westchester County’s first African American County Executive thanked voters Tuesday night for braving the wintry conditions to cast their ballots.
“It is an honor to be elected Westchester County Executive,” Jenkins shared with the crowd Tuesday night. “I want to thank everyone who showed up to the polls, in the snow and wind, to let their voices be heard. Instead of succumbing to partisan division, we chose to come together and chart a new course forward – one focused on bringing real, lasting results to every community across Westchester County.”
“We won’t be distracted by the chaos in Washington – my administration will continue to deliver great services for Westchester residents and tackle the issues that matter most,” he stated. “It’s time to build on our progress, secure funding for affordable housing, bring down costs for working people and their families, keep every resident safe, protect all our rights, defend democracy, and ensure everyone has a real opportunity to succeed.”
Jenkins worked as deputy county executive under Latimer for seven years after previously serving as a county legislator for eleven. The Board of Legislators appointed him as Latimer’s temporary substitute until the special election. The 63-year-old Yonkers resident previously worked for Apple and other technology and communications companies.
[…] as we celebrate the historic election of Ken Jenkins, the first Black Westchester County Executive, we must acknowledge that leaders like Norwood E. Jackson paved the way. Long before Jenkins made […]