The freshman lawmaker from the Bronx says he’s his own man, even when it comes to supporters who helped him defeat the embattled Pedro Espada, once the highest ranking Hispanic in New York State government.

It may be one of the most closely watched races in Tuesday’s New York Primary, but voters in the northwest Bronx seem largely uninterested in the contest between the powerful state Senator Pedro Espada Jr. and his challenger Gustavo Rivera.