No big surprise here, but big satisfaction: Ousted State Senator and girlfriend-beater Hiram Monserrate got his ass handed to him yesterday by Jose Peralta in the special election in Queens for Monserrate’s former seat. With 94 percent of the vote counted last night, unofficial returns from the 13th State Senate District showed Peralta with 66 percent of the vote, dwarfing Monserrate's 27 percent, the Times reports. At a restaurant in East Elmhurst, Peralta put things in perspective, echoing Gerald Ford post-Watergate: "Tonight we put an end to dysfunction. Our nightmare is over." (Some might say the nightmare is merely shifting to a bad dream.)
In his concession speech, Monserrate chose to look on the bright side, somehow keeping a straight face while telling a crowd of supporters, "It’s a testament to our community that we pulled 4,000 votes. What we showed here is that there’s an alternative to politics as usual in Queens... This is not the last of Hiram Monserrate." Hey, Hiram, stop trying to scare us—it's St. Patrick's Day, not Halloween. Monserrate did not rule out running for public office in the future, but last night City Councilman Daniel Dromm (D-Queens) crowed, "This is the final nail in Hiram Monserrate's coffin, and we are burying him!" Sources tell the Post that Monserrate is rumored to be eyeing Peralta's now-open Assembly seat.
Below, an appropriate video to wash this all down:
