And Then There Was One: G.O.P. Defends Its Last Seat in Queens

The party struggles to hold on in an increasingly diverse borough, even as it fights its own internal battles.

In heavily Democratic Queens, Councilman Eric Ulrich is a political oddity: He’s the only Republican elected to public office in the borough, and one of the only ones remaining in New York City outside of Staten Island. “One is the loneliest number,” Mr. Ulrich said. A white moderate, Mr. Ulrich has won four elections over his 12-year term representing District 32 in southern Queens. But because of term limits, he cannot run for re-election, making the race to replace him something of a last stand for Republicans in the borough.