Nicole Malliotakis

Nicole Malliotakis has once again defeated a challenger from the left in NY-11, securing a victory over Democrat Mike DeCillis.

With more than 97% of scanners reporting as of 10:45 p.m. Tuesday, Malliotakis had earned 101,050 votes (56%) to DeCillis’ 78,734 (44%), according to unofficial Board of Elections results.

Malliotakis was scheduled to watch election night results alongside members of the Staten Island Republican Party at the Sgt. Michael J. Labetti VFW Post in Staten Island. DeCillis, meanwhile, was set to gather with supporters at San Jeronimo Restaurant and Bakery, also on Staten Island. Malliotakis had yet to issue a public statement or reply to request for comment by press time.

NY-11, which covers all of Staten Island as well as portions of southern Brooklyn, is New York City’s only Republican congressional district. It has long been considered the city’s only swing district, though it has been held by Republicans since 2013, with the exception of Democrat Max Rose’s single term from 2019 to 2021.

Malliotakis, a lifelong New York City resident and career politician, won her first victory in NY-11 in 2020, defeating incumbent Rose by about six points, or 18,000 votes.

Two years later, Rose challenged her, hoping to swing the district back the other way.

He lost by more than 40,000 votes in a particularly strong year for Brooklyn Republicans. In 2024, Malliotakis defeated a new opponent, Democrat Andrea Morse, by more than 70,000 votes.

During her four years in office, Malliotakis has secured millions of dollars in federal funding for programs and infrastructure within her district, and has touted federal tax cuts she says benefit Staten Islanders. In the waning days of the race, Malliotakis campaigned against rising utility bills and energy costs alongside local Brooklyn conservatives.

A strident supporter of President Donald Trump, Malliotakis voted in favor of the controversial “Big Beautiful Bill,” which included massive spending cuts for Medicare and Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

The move sparked months of protest outside her Brooklyn district office, as constituents slammed cuts to federal healthcare programs and Malliotakis’ support for ICE.

In recent months, Malliotakis has also faced pushback on Staten Island, a Republican stronghold. Local advocates started weekly “Malliotakis Monday” protests outside her Staten Island office, protests frequently attended by DeCillis.

Those protests were part of what inspired DeCillis to run, he told Brooklyn Paper last month.

“I realized that there was a genuine grassroots movement happening that was separate and different than what had happened before, because these are people who came to their first protest, their first town hall, their first rally,” he said.

Republicans across New York and in swing states across the U.S. are facing blowback from Americans angry with Trump and his policies at home and abroad, fueling Democratic hopes of re-taking the Senate and, maybe, the House of Representatives.

DeCillis and his supporters hoped that blowback would project him to victory in a district largely forgotten by both national and local Democratic parties, but it was not quite enough.

Though DeCillis’ bid was unsuccessful, Democrats claimed several victories across southern Brooklyn on Election night. In Assembly District 46, Chris McCreight defeated incumbent Republican Alec Brook-Krasny; in Assembly District 45, Democrat Joey Cohen-Saban defeated Republican incumbent Michael Novakhov; and in State Senate District 17, Larry He defeated Republican Steve Chan.

In Assembly District 49, Joyce Xiaoqiong Xie defeated Republican Lester Chang, flipping the seat and becoming the first Asian American woman to represent the district.

This story is breaking. Check back for statements from both candidates and continued coverage of all Election night results.

A New Jersey native and enthusiast, Kirstyn is Brooklyn Paper’s digital editor and a reporter covering northern Brooklyn from Greenpoint to Gowanus.

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