NEW YORK — Democratic Rep. Charles Rangel was leading his challenger Adriano Espaillat early Wednesday after a tough primary that presented the iconic congressman with the most serious threat of his lengthy political career.
The 84-year-old Rangel stopped short of declaring victory in his quest for a 23rd term, though he left little doubt as to which way he thought the race was going. But Espaillat, who barely lost to Rangel in 2012, refused to concede, pointing to votes yet to be counted.
With 100 percent of precincts reporting in New York’s 13th District, Rangel led Espaillat 47.4 percent to 43.6 percent, but The Associated Press said it was too close to call, with an unspecified number of absentee and provisional ballots still waiting to be counted. Reports suggested a declaration of a winner in the race may not be imminent.
(Full primary election results here)
The campaigns played out against a backdrop of demographic changes in Harlem that appeared to erode the African American congressman’s base of support, and many believed he was the underdog in the race. Rangel also saw many of his former allies abandon him and couldn’t fully shake the cloud that lingered from his ethics censure in 2010.
Rangel spoke to supporters at Taino Towers in Harlem around 11:15 p.m. Tuesday. He took the stage with his wife, Alma, to loud cheers. “We don’t need a whole lot of numbers to tell you how good we feel, how proud we feel,” he said to chants of “Charlie! Charlie!”
At around 1 a.m. E.T., Espaillat released a statement pointing out that in his 2012 race against Rangel, news outlets prematurely called the race for the incumbent only to see the gap close as more votes were counted. Rangel would go on to win that race by fewer than 1,100 votes.
“As we learned in 2012, every single vote needs to be counted in this race. Given the thousands of votes outstanding, the people of Upper Manhattan and The Bronx deserve a full accounting of every vote to achieve a complete and accurate tally in this race,” Espaillat said.
(WATCH: Inside Rangel's victory party)
Chelsea Connor, an Espaillat spokeswoman, said the campaign wouldn’t be making any further statements on the matter until later Wednesday.
The night offered Rangel and his supporters plenty of reason for jubilation. Many political observers initially thought Rangel might fall. He was running for reelection in a rapidly changing district — one in which his base of black voters was growing smaller — and against an opponent who nearly ousted him two years ago.
Harlem, once regarded as the center of the black cultural experience in America, has seen a recent influx of Hispanics and whites. Win or lose, many political observers believe, Rangel will be the last black House member from the district.
(PHOTOS: Primary day in New York)
Despite those trends, Rangel aggressively wooed the district’s black voters.
He presented himself as a Barack Obama ally – despite failing to get an endorsement from the president — telling voters he wanted to serve in Congress until the end of Obama’s term. And, in the final days of the contest, he suggested that the GOP’s opposition to the president was in part racially driven. He offered no apologies for his rhetoric, which some of his critics called harsh.
Some of Rangel’s allies called the talk of Harlem’s changing racial face overblown. They argue that the congressman’s performance demonstrated that he’d successfully appealed to both of the district’s dominant racial groups.
“I think people thought, he represents blacks and Hispanics,” said Democratic Rep. Gregory Meeks, a fellow Congressional Black Caucus member who represents a nearby Queens-based district. “People aren’t looking at the color of your skin. They’re looking at how they’re being represented.”
(Earlier on POLITICO: Cochran, Rangel legacies on the line)
Other Rangel backers say that voters were swayed because they wanted Rangel — who has said this campaign will be his last — to go out with his head held high.
“As Charlie Rangel has said, ‘This is my last hurrah.’ And people said, ‘He deserves to go out on top,’” said Robert Jackson, a former New York City councilman.
For Rangel, though, the race was a hard one. He found himself snubbed by former allies in the New York City political establishment, including Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. and Comptroller Scott Stringer, who endorsed Espaillat over the incumbent. Obama also declined to endorse Rangel. The president has been cool to Rangel ever since the congressman endorsed Hillary Clinton over him in the 2008 presidential primary.
In 2010, while Rangel was embroiled in the ethics controversy, the president publicly urged him to retire “with dignity” rather than seek reelection.
Speaking to reporters after he departed the stage late Tuesday, Rangel insisted he had no hard feelings for those who had not backed him — who, he said, were acting politically.
“In terms of those people who didn’t support me because of their own political aspirations, I don’t see how I can afford to be angry. I really don’t,” he said. “Those of you who know me know I really mean it. They’re ambitious. They make decisions based on whether I win or lose. But fortunately, as my wife will tell you, we can’t think of a political enemy that I have. There may be a whole lot of names that I’ve forgotten. But I can’t waste a lot of time with people who don’t support me.”
If Rangel loses, it would bring an end to a congressional career that stretches back to 1970. It was then that Rangel upended Adam Clayton Powell, a legendary figure in black politics, in a Democratic primary. Some drew comparisons between Espaillat’s challenge to Rangel and that earlier contest, which also was seen as a generational fight.
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