No SNL joke: Harvey Epstein is actually on the ballot in NYC

If any publicity is good publicity, New York Assemblyman Harvey Epstein hit the jackpot Saturday night when John Mulaney portrayed him in a fake political ad on Saturday Night Live. (The same SNL which saw a cameo from none other than Kamala Harris.)

In case you missed it, the gist of the joke was that Epstein, who is currently running for New York City City Council, happens to share both the first and last names of two of the city’s most notorious sex offenders: Harvey Weinstein and Jeffrey Epstein.

“Look, is my name ideal? Of course not.” Mulaney-as-Epstein interjected SNL‘s False advertisement. “But luckily I’m a different guy.”

The same applies to the real Harvey Epstein, who as Assemblyman for New York’s 74th district represents parts of the Lower East Side, East Village and Midtown East neighborhoods of Manhattan. As a candidate for City Council, he has promised to tackle the city’s housing crisis, increase access to mental health care and education funding, and fight for the rights of people with disabilities.

“I’m not going to lie,” the fake Epstein continued SNL. “The naming thing has become a bit of a problem. ‘Harvey’ I could almost manage. But ‘Epstein’ – this thing is an albatross.”

Unlike his SNL double (Mulaney wore a bald cap to portray him), Epstein makes no reference to his unfortunate name in his campaign material. But he might consider adding this line from the sketch when the selection hits its final piece:

“Think of it this way. If my names are that bad and I’m still running for public office, think how much better I’d be than everyone else. It’s just math.”

Will Epstein see one SNL bump when the election results come in on Tuesday night? We will keep you updated.