Gotham Gazette

The Place for New York Policy and politics

Elections

Elections

  • Gubernatorial Candidates Miner, Sharpe & Hawkins Lay Out Campaign Platforms, Cases Against Cuomo

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    Miner, Sharpe, Hawkins (l-r)


    Governor Andrew Cuomo defeated Democratic primary challenger Cynthia Nixon fairly handily on September 13, when attention began to shift to the race between Cuomo and Republican gubernatorial nominee Marc Molinaro, currently the Dutchess county executive.

    But while Cuomo and Molinaro are the nominees of the two major parties, and each will also appear on at least two other party ballot lines in November, there are three other candidates running serious general election campaigns for governor of New York. (It remains to be seen if

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  • Democrats Target Previously Ignored Brooklyn Shot at State Senate Majority

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    (Photo: @agounardes)


    As Democrats eye majority control of the New York State Senate that has effectively eluded them for a decade, party leaders and a coalition of progressive activists are descending on Southern Brooklyn’s District 22, where Democrat Andrew Gounardes is challenging Republican Senator Marty Golden and where registered Democrats outnumber Republicans more than two-to-one.

    The Senate Democratic conference currently holds 31 seats and needs just one more for a majority in the 63-seat upper chamber of the state Legislature, while their party-mates

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  • After Primary Wins, Progressive Activists Eye Flipping State Senate Seats, and Wide Majority

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    A 'True Blue' rally (photo: @indivisibleny13)


    Prior to September 13, primary day, the True Blue coalition, made up of progressive activists from about 60 individual groups across the state, had one main goal: to depose all eight state Senators of the erstwhile Independent Democratic Conference (IDC) and another rogue Democratic Senator from Brooklyn, Simcha Felder, all of whom have bolstered and voted with the Republican majority. But after emerging victorious in six of those races, most of which came as a surprise, the activist network is turning its newfound influence and

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: Marc Molinaro, Republican Nominee for Governor

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    Ben Max, left, of Gotham Gazette, and Jarrett Murphy, right, of City Limits


    September 19, 2018 - Max & Murphy Podcast: Marc Molinaro, Republican Nominee for Governor

    marc molinaro pod277Republican gubernatorial candidate Marc Molinaro joined the show to talk about his background and his candidacy. In the interview, he touched upon aspects of his career, his critiques of Governor Cuomo, his

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: Primary Post-Mortem with Rebecca Katz, Top Cynthia Nixon Strategist

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    Ben Max, left, of Gotham Gazette, and Jarrett Murphy, right, of City Limits


    September 19, 2018 - Max & Murphy Podcast: Primary Post-Mortem with Rebecca Katz, Top Cynthia Nixon Strategist

    rebecca katz 277Rebecca Katz was the chief strategist for Cynthia Nixon's campaign for governor. Katz, a principal at Hilltop Public Solitions and veteran of Bill de Blasio's 2013 campaign and 2014 City Hall,

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  • Surging Democratic Voter Turnout in New York City May Mean Greater Importance in State Elections

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    (photo: Mayor's Office/Kristen Artz)


    There was an extraordinary turnout in New York City in the just-completed statewide Democratic primaries on Thursday, September 13. In the city alone, 855,000 Democrats came to the polls. That vote substantially exceeded the crowded and competitive 2013 Democratic mayoral primary (690,000), was nearly triple the city’s turnout in the 2014 Cuomo-Teachout primary (298,000), and came somewhat close to matching the Clinton-Sanders turnout in New York City of practically 1 million Democrats (996,000).

    The good news about

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  • Republican Slate Seeks to End Statewide Drought

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    Molinaro, Killian, Wofford, Trichter (l-r)


    With the primary election over and the Democratic statewide ticket in clear view, attention across the state shifts to the general election, with the November 6 vote fewer than 50 days away. Republicans fought no statewide primaries and have had a slate of candidates ready and raring to take on their Democratic opponents. Those GOP nominees have been raising money and campaigning but somewhat crowded out of the conversation as Democrats waged highly contested races for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and Attorney

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  • How Insurgent Forces Activated, Educated and Brought the IDC Down

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    Alessandra Biaggi celebrates (photo: @Biaggi4NY)


    Hit the ground early. Educate the electorate. Reach new voters. Go viral.

    Those are a few of the strategies that propelled insurgent candidates to victory in last week’s primary elections, wherein six challengers prevailed over sitting Democratic state senators who were once members of the Independent Democratic Conference, a breakaway faction that caucused with Republicans for seven years, creating or padding the GOP majority in the chamber.

    The upsets in the state Senate races instantly

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  • The Real Story of Cuomo’s Dominant Primary Win

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    Gov. Cuomo, right, & Howard Glaser, the author, middle-left (Governor's Office)


    Findley Lake, in Chautauqua County, on the western edge of the state, is about as far as you can drive from the Bronx and still be in New York State. It’s as close to Cleveland, Ohio as eastern Suffolk County is to the Grand Concourse. Chautauqua is a big county, land-wise, 1,100 square miles -- about 25 times larger than the Bronx. People in Chautauqua are spread out among rolling farmlands and lakes, about 132 residents in a square mile. The Bronx crams 34,000 souls into the same mile.

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  • A Closer Look at Democratic Primary Turnout, Margins and Geography

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    Gov. Cuomo voting in Thursday's primary (photo: @NYGovCuomo)


    The Democratic gubernatorial primary between Governor Andrew Cuomo and Cynthia Nixon saw a significant surge in voter participation, but turnout still stood at only 27 percent of active registered Democrats.

    Compared to the 2014 primary election, when Zephyr Teachout challenged Cuomo, who was then seeking a second term, turnout more than doubled, according to preliminary numbers. And, turnout spiked slightly more in New York City than elsewhere. Specifically, 28 percent of registered

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  • 2018 New York State Primary Results: Cuomo, Hochul, James Prevail While Senate Upsets Abound

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    (photo: @andrewcuomo)


    Governor Andrew Cuomo won the Democratic nomination by a wide margin Thursday, with his running-mate Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul surviving a much closer race, Public Advocate Letitia James prevailing comfortably in a crowded Attorney General primary, and more than half a dozen upsets of sitting state Senators, including six of the eight former members of the Independent Democratic Conference (IDC).

    Additionally, voter turnout was significantly higher than 2014, the last gubernatorial election year, perhaps owing to the

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  • Cuomo and Hochul Win Primaries, Again Form Democratic General Election Ticket

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    Gov. Cuomo (photo: @andrewcuomo)


    Governor Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, won his party’s nomination for a third term on Thursday, after a bruising primary battle against actor and education activist Cynthia Nixon, who challenged him from his left. Cuomo won with about 65 percent of the vote against Nixon’s 35 percent. Joining Cuomo on the Democratic ticket is Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul, who won the party nomination over her own primary challenger, New York City Council Member Jumaane Williams. Hochul received 53 percent against Williams’ 47

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  • James Eyes Statewide History as Democratic Attorney General Nominee

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    Letitia James (photo: @TishJames)


    New York City Public Advocate Letitia James, backed by Governor Andrew Cuomo, much of the rest of the state’s political establishment, and New York City voters, on Thursday won the Democratic attorney general primary, successfully fending off competitors Zephyr Teachout, Sean Patrick Maloney, and Leecia Eve.

    James, who pitched herself as having the best track record to become "the people's lawyer," was declared the victor of what appeared to be a wide open, three-way race, at around 10:30 p.m., when most precincts had

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  • Cuomo Gives Limited Insight Into Third Term Agenda

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    (Photo: Mike Groll- Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo)


    As Governor Andrew Cuomo seeks a third term in office, facing actor and education activist Cynthia Nixon in the primary on Thursday, he has pitched himself as a man of action, a chief executive who gets things done with little regard for politicking. But as even Nixon acknowledges Cuomo as a heavy favorite and Cuomo remains the likeliest winner in November, the Democratic incumbent has largely run on his accomplishments, perceived, exaggerated, and real, while downplaying his actual

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  • Teachout-Maloney Battle May Help James Win Attorney General Nomination

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    Rep. Maloney at a Syracuse pub (photo: @MaloneyForNY)


    While the four Democratic attorney general candidates will be in New York City on Thursday evening watching the primary election results come in, two of the race’s three frontrunners — Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney and Zephyr Teachout — are polling best upstate, competing for votes there as Public Advocate Letitia James dominates in the city.

    Though the New York political establishment has coalesced around James, and several editorial boards have endorsed Teachout, Maloney led the pack in a Siena College ...

  • Max & Murphy Podcast: Primary Day Is Here

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    Ben Max, left, of Gotham Gazette, and Jarrett Murphy, right, of City Limits


    September 12, 2018 - Max & Murphy Podcast: 2018 Primary Day is Here

    primary day sept 221In a final preview of primary day for state-level races, we discussed the fact that primary day determine the future of the Democratic Party in New York, and dissected the races for Governor, Lieutenant Governor and Attorney General,

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  • A Closer Look at the Democratic Attorney General Candidates’ Legal Careers

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    The Democratic AG candidates at the NYC Bar Association forum (photo: @NYCBarAssnNews)


    At one of several attorney general candidate forums last week, the four Democrats in the race were asked for a highlight of their legal careers, and what is shows about how they’d approach the job.

    New York City Public Advocate Letitia James began with a quip about embracing an attack line against her that she wakes up every morning looking for someone to sue, going on to describe a pro bono client she took on whose father was murdered, whose mother abandoned him, and was

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  • Last-Minute Guide to Voting on Primary Day, September 13

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    Gov. Cuomo voting in 2011 (photo: The Governor's Office)


    The 2018 New York state-level primary elections are Thursday, with mostly Democratic races on the ballot, including hotly-contested primaries for three statewide positions of Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and Attorney General. There are also many legislative primaries, mostly on the Democratic side, including eight state Senate races in which the former members of the Independent Democratic Conference, which folded in April amid a great deal of criticism, are being challenged. There are a few other Senate primaries

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  • How ‘Independent’ Must the New York Attorney General Be?

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    The state Democratic convention (photo: Gotham Gazette)


    One thing is for sure about the four candidates in the Democratic primary for Attorney General: each wants to be thought of as “independent.” Witness these self-descriptions:

    Leecia Eve: “An independent advocate for all New Yorkers”

    Tish James: “I’ve been independent all my life”

    Sean Patrick Maloney: “I think I bring true independence”

    Zephyr Teachout: “An independent fighter for New York”

    This independent streak all intensified when James, endorsed by Governor

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  • Get Ready to Vote in the Hochul-Williams Lieutenant Governor Primary

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    Jumanne Williams, left, & Kathy Hochul (photos: @JumaaneWilliams & @KathyHochul)


    New York City Council Member Jumaane Williams in January announced that he was running for lieutenant governor, posing a Democratic primary challenge to Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul. While doing so, Williams took aim at both Hochul and her partner in government and running-mate, Governor Andrew Cuomo. Williams criticized from the left Cuomo’s policies and management, while saying that Hochul has done little to hold the governor accountable, and promised to if

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  • One of the State's Most Powerful Unions Tries to Take Down One of Its Most Powerful Politicians

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    photo: @32BJSEIU


    As Alessandra Biaggi, a first-time candidate for office, attempts to unseat Democratic state Senator Jeff Klein, once the powerful leader of a rogue faction of Democratic senators, a prominent labor union is pulling no punches to ensure that her insurgent campaign prevails in the September 13 primary.

    The property services workers union, 32BJ SEIU, which boasts more than 160,000 members and is a regular political heavyweight, has been aggressively courting voters and spending money to help Biaggi defeat Klein, a Democrat the union once backed. A force in

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  • Vacancy in the Public Advocate's Office? Call the City Council Speaker

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    Letitia James and Corey Johnson (photo: Gotham Gazette)


    Two former speakers of the New York City Council -- Melissa Mark-Viverito and Christine Quinn -- are on the list of possible contenders for a potential vacancy in the office of public advocate should the current occupant, Letitia James, win the post of attorney general in this fall’s elections. But it’s the sitting Council speaker, Corey Johnson, who will get to do the job first if that scenario came to pass.

    James is competing against three other Democrats to win the party’s primary

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: Final Days of the Lieutenant Governor Primary

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    Ben Max, left, of Gotham Gazette, and Jarrett Murphy, right, of City Limits


    September 5, 2018 - Final Days of the Lieutenant Governor Primary between Kathy Hochul & Jumaane Williams

    podcast hocul williams 277Just eight days before their Democratic primary for Lieutenant Governor will (most likely) be decided by voters, incumbent Kathy Hochul and challenger Jumaane Williams joined the show

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  • In Brooklyn, Blake Morris Tries to Upend the State Senate Power Balance All By Himself

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    Blake Morris (photo: @BlakeMorris4NYS)


    The race for control of the New York State Senate is again this year a key touchstone of a state election cycle, but before the November general election that will determine whether Democrats can win a majority from Republicans, and thus control both houses of the Legislature, there is a series of competitive primaries on the Democratic side that will be decided September 13.

    Among them are eight races in which incumbents -- former members of the now-defunct Independent Democratic Conference -- are being challenged,

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  • Statewide Candidates File Final Pre-Primary Campaign Finance Disclosures

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    (Photo: Mike Groll/Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo)


    The primary election is next Thursday, September 13, and candidates for statewide office filed another round of campaign spending and fundraising reports this week, the final disclosures due before primary day.

    Governor Andrew Cuomo, a two-term Democrat, has been, for the most part, publicly nonchalant about his primary challenger, actor and activist Cynthia Nixon. But his campaign finance filings show he is spending far more to beat back her insurgent bid than he did four years ago,

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