Police Shutdown 'Guerilla' Viewing Party at La Esquina; Will Buzzkillers Also Ruin Williamsburg Bonfire?

Police shutdown Serge Becker and Joseph Grima's open-air Elections returns party in stages starting at 9 p.m. First, they asked that the sound be turned off on the projected results, which were beamed above La Esquina in Soho.

Next, the projector was turned off.

Eventually, about 100 people spread out over three corners—a sort of downtown version of the Times Square crowd (think: stylishly dressed people who didn't seem to care much)—dispersed. André Balazs was supposed to show up, but didn't. Patti Smith arrived around 10 p.m., but it was unclear if she'd perform or not.

Mr. Grima, director of Storefront for Art and Architecture, a gallery across the street, admitted that he and Mr. Becker had only decided to hold the event a week ago, saying they'd decided to "go guerilla." His partner in the project, Mr. Becker, is Swiss and unable to vote.

So, who called the 5-0? "Georgette Fleischer, our neighbor around the corner on the 3rd floor," claimed Mr. Grima. He said she shuts them down often.

Mr. Grima's gallery had recently hosted a show called White House Redux, in which artists were invited to re-envision the Presidential residence. Mr. Grima said his favorite piece was "a negative pyramid. At the bottom was the Oval Office so the public visiting would look down on the president."

Standing on the street were Jason Villar, a 32-year-old marketing executive from the East Village, and Carlos Wesley, a 33-year-old surgeon. Mr. Wesley, who voted absentee in Iowa and was wearing a very un-surgeon-like white T-shirt and leather jacket, was telling the story of how he livened up his own debate watching: "The debates were so boring and obvious because all my friends are Democrats," he said. "So I started watching them incognito at Young Republican gatherings. I was just trying to make it interesting."

"There were other incognito Democrats, too," he claimed.

Mr. Villar, who was wearing a newsboy cap, told of his voting experience today, his first time in New York. " I think I voted twice," he said. "I hit the lever once and the guy said it didn't light up. So I voted again." At that, Mr. Villar raised his cardboard beer cup. "Cheers!"

The two men said they were feeling good—Mr. Villar had missed out on Halloween and wanted to be out tonight—and were planning to attend a bonfire party in Williamsburg later tonight.