COVID-19 ENTERS THE RACE
9 sick at Bx. Board of Elections offices, a week before City Council vote
A coronavirus outbreak at the Board of Elections offices in The Bronx has left at least nine people sick as officials scramble to keep a special election for a local City Council race on track, The Post has learned.
The BOE employees work at the board’s warehouse and offices in the borough and fell ill over the last several days, sources said.
The BOE’s Bronx warehouse is used to store voting machines and other equipment. One source said the outbreak is suspected to have originated at the facility.
It’s the biggest COVID-19 cluster at a BOE facility since the pandemic began, the person said.
The outbreak comes a week before voting is set to get underway in the election for The Bronx’s 12th Council District to replace former Councilman Andy King, who was expelled from the body in October after probes found that he misused city resources and abused his staff.
The winner of the election will serve out the rest of King’s term representing the district, which includes Co-Op City.
Many BOE employees do not have the luxury of working remotely because they must staff early-voting centers and Election Day polling sites and help in the tallying of absentee ballots.
Word of the Bronx outbreak came hours after officials revealed that an employee in the upstate Madison County Board of Elections had tested positive for the coronavirus, forcing a second member of that six-person staff to quarantine, as well.
Officials there said the infection was not expected to impact the drawn-out legal battle over Republican Claudia Tenney’s 12vote lead over incumbent Democratic Rep. Anthony Brindisi.
New York City’s BOE, meanwhile, noted that it is taking precautions to prevent infection.
“Our Board of Elections staff are essential workers who deserve praise for working tirelessly throughout the entire pandemic to conduct the elections within the city of New York,” said spokeswoman Valerie Vazquez.
“The board has done everything we can to keep our employees safe. There are daily temperature checks, social distancing, mandatory mask-wearing throughout the offices and plastic partitions at all workspaces.”