Anthony Weiner’s political comeback seemed unlikely Tuesday night as the disgraced ex-congressman was running a distant fourth late Tuesday in his bid for New York City Council.
Weiner, whose serial sexting scandals upended his political career and ultimately landed him in prison, entered the race in December for an open Council seat in Manhattan’s District 2 — from the East Village to Gramercy and Kips Bay-Murray Hill.
Early results showed him trailing the front-runner, State Assemblyman Harvey Epstein, by 7,000 votes with nearly 90% of ballots counted.
Weiner hasn’t held public office since 2011, when he was ousted from his congressional seat after accidentally tweeting a sexually explicit photo of himself.
Two years later, subsequent sexts revealed his online pseudonym “Carlos Danger” and derailed his mayoral run in 2013. He was eventually caught sending inappropriate photos to a 15-year-old girl in North Carolina and sentenced to almost two years in prison.
The race to succeed the term-limited councilmember in the district, Carlina Rivera, drew a competitive primary field that in addition to Epstein included Sarah Batchu, a de Blasio alum, and Andrea Gordillo, a local nonprofit leader and community board chair. Epstein had the backing of a lost list of elected officials, including Reps. Jerry Nadler and Dan Goldman.
Epstein may have also benefited from a higher profile after he was the subject of a Saturday Night Live sketch in November that spoofed his name for its similarities to two disgraced men: Harvey Weinstein and Jeffrey Epstein. He is not related to either individual and importantly, has not been embroiled in any similar scandals.
Originally Published: June 24, 2025 at 10:33 PM EDT
