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Mayor Michael Bloomberg only just announced the date Friday for the special election to fill the City Council seat vacated by Dennis Gallagher, but already two candidates have reportedly collected enough signatures to get their names on the ballot.

Bloomberg set the date for the election for June 3, giving candidates until April 30 to collect the necessary signatures.

Gallagher, a Republican representing the 30th Council District in Queens, pleaded guilty March 17 to two misdemeanors after he was accused last year of sexually assaulting a 52-year-old woman at his Middle Village district office. The 43-year-old husband and father of two agreed to resign from the council and complete an alcohol treatment program as part of a deal to keep him out of prison.

His resignation was effective Friday, the same day the mayor called for the special election.

Valerie Vasquez, the director of communications and public affairs for the Board of Elections, said Republican candidates Anthony Como and Tom Ognibene have both filed petitions with the elections board claiming they have received the number of signatures needed to be on the ballot. Como is an aide to State Sen. Serphin Maltese (R-Glendale) and Ognibene is a former 30th District Councilman and a 2005 mayoral candidate.

To be placed on this ballot, a candidate must collect 986 signatures, according to Vasquez. That number represents five percent of the number of votes cast in the district for governor in the last election.

Candidates have until April 30 to submit a statement to the elections board claiming they have received the necessary number of signatures. The board does not count the signatures unless an objection is filed.

This special election is only to fill the vacated seat for the remainder of the year. Another special election will be held later this year to fill the remainder of Gallagher’s term.

While Como and Ognibene are first to submit their petitions, they are not the only ones who have expressed an interest in the race. Other hopefuls include Democrats Elizabeth Crowley, a cousin of U.S. Rep. Joseph Crowley; and Charles Ober, active in the district’s civic groups and a member of the Queens Civic Congress. A third Republican, Joseph A. Suraci, has also announced his intent to run. Suraci is an attorney and Middle Village resident who has served on a number of local civic groups.