The 1978 New York's 17th congressional district special election is recorded as a brief interruption in Andy Warhol’s Valentine’s Day social rounds: Bella Abzug was running against Bill Green for a seat vacated by Mayor Koch, and the result was a defeat for Abzug. The diary places the contest inside the city’s party circuit, then records its outcome without a vote count or extended political commentary.

The Election in a Party Setting

On February 14, Warhol noted how many people were celebrating Valentine’s Day and described the occasion as a major holiday. Paulette picked him up for the “I Love New York” party at Tavern on the Green, where Bella Abzug came in. The diary made the political stakes part of the evening’s scene: it was election day, and Abzug was trying to win the seat Mayor Koch had vacated. Her opponent was Bill Green.

The Result

The following entry reports that Bella Abzug lost to Bill Green. Warhol mentioned the result while recounting a visit to the Joan Crawford pre-auction exhibit, which was being taken down ahead of the auction. The election’s outcome arrives amid the next day’s social and gallery observations, rather than as a separate political account. The diary supplies no tally or further explanation of the loss.

Diary Record and Significance

The event’s shape in the diary is compressed but chronological: Abzug’s appearance and candidacy are noted on election day, and the result is stated in the next entry. This shift from a party scene to a one-line electoral outcome gives the contest a place among Warhol’s everyday observations of New York public life. The record establishes the candidates, the vacant seat, and the result, while leaving the campaign and the reasons for its outcome outside the account.