Rafael Espinal is an American politician

Politician

A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

 who won the open 54th district seat in the New York State Assembly

New York State Assembly

The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature. The Assembly is composed of 150 members representing an equal number of districts, with each district having an average population of 128,652...

 in a special election held on September 13, 2011. The seat was left vacant after Darryl Towns

Darryl Towns

Darryl C. Towns is a former representative of the 54th Assembly District in the New York State Legislature, which comprises the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Bushwick, Cypress Hills, and East New York from 1993 to 2011.-Career:...

 resigned from the post in order to take a position with Governor Andrew Cuomo

Andrew Cuomo

Andrew Mark Cuomo is the 56th and current Governor of New York, having assumed office on January 1, 2011. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the 64th New York State Attorney General, and was the 11th United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development...

's administration. The assembly district represents parts of Bushwick, East New York, Bedford-Stuyvesant, Cypress Hills

Cypress Hills, Brooklyn

Cypress Hills is a sub-section of the East New York neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York City, lying north of City Line and south of Cypress Hills Cemetery, in the far northeastern corner of Brooklyn. It is abutted on the west by Bushwick and on the east, across the Brooklyn–Queens border, by...

, and Cityline

City Line, Brooklyn

City Line is a sub-section of the East New York neighborhood in Brooklyn, New York City, bordering the neighborhoods of Cypress Hills to the north and Ozone Park, Queens to the east, and the Shore Parkway to the south...

 in Brooklyn

Brooklyn

Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...

.

Espinal had the endorsement from the Brooklyn

Brooklyn

Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...

 Democratic Party

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 boss, Vito Lopez

Vito Lopez

Vito Joseph Lopez is an American politician, member of the New York State Assembly, and chairman of the Democratic Party of Kings County.-Personal life:...

, and from the Republican Party

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 and the Conservative Party of New York State. Espinal defeated Jesus Gonzalez running on the Working Families Party

Working Families Party

The Working Families Party is a minor political party in the United States founded in New York in 1998. There are "sister" parties to the New York WFP in Connecticut, Massachusetts, South Carolina, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Vermont and Oregon, but there is as yet no national WFP...

 line and and Deidra Towns (previous assemblyman Darryl Towns's sister) running on her party platform, "Community First".

Espinal has lived in Brooklyn all his life, while his parents are from the Dominican Republic

Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...

.