From Defeat to Determination: The Spirit of Victory Lives On

By Phil Orenstein, President of the Queens Village Republican Club

As we gather for our club meeting on November 6, 2025—just two days after the disappointing results of the General Election—we are still proudly calling it a Victory Party.

Why? Because what we built together was far greater than any single election outcome.

It was a victory for the hundreds of dedicated volunteers who stood proudly with us for months—making thousands of phone calls and texts, knocking on doors, putting up posters, donating, rallying, and chanting “Curtis! Curtis! Curtis!” with unshakable faith and energy. They fought until the end, and many have now joined our club family, ready for the battles and campaigns ahead. That is our golden victory.

It was a victory because we remained loyal to Curtis Sliwa—the “rebel with a cause,” the People’s Mayor, the true New Yorker who has dedicated his life to serving others without seeking title, power or profit. From his youth as a volunteer crime-fighter to the founder of the Guardian Angels, Curtis has embodied courage, compassion, and selfless devotion to his city. We are proud that we stood behind a man who stood up for what was right—because he cared deeply for his fellow New Yorkers. That loyalty, that integrity, is a victory in the eyes of God and in the hearts of every volunteer who gave their all, and every voter, who voted Curtis Sliwa.

Yes, many mocked him for his red beret and sneered at his compassion for the forgotten and voiceless—people and animals alike. Some so-called allies turned their backs, abandoning friendship and principle and surrendering to the false comfort of compromise. They convinced themselves they were choosing the “lesser of two evils,” but in the end, they only empowered “the greater evil.”

The uninformed herd voted the “D” line on the ballot, and too many weak-willed Republicans followed them off the cliff. The immature voters were seduced by revolutionary slogans, blind to the fact that socialism—however beautifully packaged—always leads to human misery and loss of freedom. History has proven this again and again: from Stalin to Mao to Castro, charismatic promises end in death and despair, not deliverance.

But the story does not end here.

Curtis will keep fighting the good fight—and so will we. The Queens Village Republican Club will continue to lead with courage and conviction, as we have since 1875. We will rebuild and strengthen our Republican Party from the ground up. We will recruit, educate, and empower a new generation of patriotic Americans—County Committee men and women in every Election District—who will educate and inform their neighbors and fight for the city and nation we love.

This is our mission. This is our calling: “Educating and Informing all New Yorkers since 1875.”

We have not lost. We have learned. And with renewed faith and determination, we will rise again—stronger, wiser, and more united than ever before.

Let’s get to work.