The East Bronx was ready for change when residents went to the polls Tuesday, said Republican City Council candidate Kirsty Marmorato Wednesday, a day after she appeared to pull an election upset.

The morning after Marmorato declared victory in the Bronx’s District 13, she joined NY1’s “Mornings On 1” to discuss why she currently holds the lead over her opponent, incumbent Democrat Marjorie Velázquez, by a healthy margin.

“They were ready for the change. They feel like there’s no more local control in the community,” Marmorato told host Pat Kiernan. “They don’t feel like they have a say in what’s going on in their neighborhoods and they’re just fed up with it.”

With mail-in ballots still coming in, NY1 has yet to officially call the race. Nevertheless, Marmorato has 52.8% of the vote over Velazquez’s 47.2%.  

If Marmorato holds on to her lead, she will be the Bronx’s first Republican elected official in 20 years, a fact not lost on her.

Marmorato credited her performance on Election Day to hitting the campaign trail consistently.

“That’s what it was really all about: getting out, meeting the people, seeing what they wanted and hearing their voices and listening to them,” she said.