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As Hiram Monserrate awaited a reported State Senate vote over whether he could stay in the legislative body Tuesday, some in his district in Jackson Heights, Queens were eager to see him step down.

"I think he should go. You can't be a lawmaker and commit crimes," said one local.

Monserrate was convicted of a misdemeanor assault charge last year in connection with an incident involving his girlfriend, Karla Giraldo. Yet some in Jackson Heights said that the senator would not need to step down.

"Let him keep his seat.... Because everybody makes mistakes," said another local.

Surveillance tape from the night of the alleged assault in December 2008 show Monserrate pulling Giraldo through the lobby of his apartment building.

"I used to live in the building where he lived, a co-op, and he always had an attitude about him, very cocky," said a local. "And he shouldn't represent this borough."

Monserrate was sentenced to probation for the assault, but some Jackson Heights residents question whether he was given special treatment because of his job.

"You did what you did. It's time to go, face up and deal with it," said a local. "Just like any other man out there, [when] they do that, what ends up happening? They end up being in a cell, so why not him?"

"People have problems. Nobody's perfect," said a local supporter of Monserrate. "I think what he did was bad, but really, should we focus on that for his whole career and forget all the times he helped people?"

If the State Senate votes to expel Monserrate, Governor David Paterson would call for a special election for the Queens district to be held no less than 30 days after an expulsion.