Gotham Gazette

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Elections

Elections

  • Max & Murphy Podcast: Public Advocate Candidate Jared Rich

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


    January 30, 2019 - Max & Murphy Podcast: Public Advocate Candidate Jared Rich

    jrich 150pxJared Rich is an attorney from Brooklyn and first-time candidate for office, running in the special election to become the next New York City Public Advocate, which is set for February 26. Rich joined the show to discuss his background and

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  • Public Advocate Special Election Ballot Finalized with 17 Candidates

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    (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)


    The February 26 special election for public advocate will see 17 candidates on the ballot after the New York City Board of Elections held a final hearing on ballot petition challenges and appeals on Tuesday. Nearly two dozen candidates had sought to get their names on the ballot but several were eliminated for either failing to collect enough petition signatures from voters or for other technical snafus that invalidated their petitions.

    But of the 17 candidates that will be on the ballot, not everyone is still

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  • 10 Candidates Qualify for First TV Debate in Public Advocate Special Election

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    (l-r) Melissa Mark-viverito, Ydanis Rodriguez, Dawn Smalls, Jumaane Williams Rafael Espinal; Danny O'Donnell, Michael Blake, Erich Ulrich, Nomiki Konst, Ron Kim


    Update: This article and its headline have been updated to clarify that 10, not 11, candidates officially qualified for the first televised debate of the race. The original version of this article included Assemblymember Latrice Walker, who appeared to have crossed the financial threshold but was ruled not to have by the Campaign Finance Board after its review of her filings.

    It’s

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  • My Vision for the Role of Public Advocate: Dawn Smalls

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    Dawn Smalls, the author, middle (photo: @dawnfornewyork)


    I say: no more delays.

    New Yorkers have been placed in an impossible situation by government agencies and elected officials who seem to be at a standstill in providing them the services that are essential to daily life and in many cases are inefficient, antiquated - or straight up broken.

    The subway that built this city and made it great is crumbling beneath our feet, affordable housing is not affordable for working families, the homeless crisis is increasing at alarming rates among women and

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  • 2021 Comptroller Race Now Features Two City Council Members

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    (photos: Emil Cohen & John McCarten/City Council)


    New York City Council Member Brad Lander, a Democrat from Brooklyn, has declared his intention to run for city Comptroller in the 2021 election, joining Council Member Helen Rosenthal, a Manhattan Democrat, as the only declared candidates in the race.

    The 2021 municipal election will lead to a sea change in city government, with all three citywide positions on the ballot along with the five borough president posts and all 51 City Council seats, about three dozen of which will be “open” due to term

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: Public Advocate Candidate Ron Kim

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


    January 23, 2019 - Max & Murphy Podcast: Public Advocate Candidate Ron Kim

    ron kim wbai 200pxAssemblymember Ron Kim, a Queens Democrat, is running for Public Advocate in the special election set for February 26. He joined the show to discuss his resume and his candidacy, which is staked on a "people over corporations"

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: Public Advocate Candidate Nomiki Konst

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


    January 23, 2019 - Max & Murphy Podcast: Public Advocate Candidate Nomiki Konst

    nomiki konst 200Nomiki Konst is a journalist and activist who was a Bernie Sanders delegate in 2016 and then a member of a commission to reform the Democratic National Committee, and now she is a candidate for New York City Public Advocate in

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  • Public Advocate Special Election Field Narrows Slightly, with Ballot Challenge Decisions Looming

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    (photo: Gotham Gazette)


    Nearly two dozen candidates filed ballot petition signatures with the New York City Board of Elections to run for Public Advocate in the special election scheduled for February 26, but at least three of the 23 have already been disqualified while eight others face challenges that could prevent them from getting on the ballot.

    BOE rules for ballot access are notoriously complex and candidates

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  • The 2019 Special Election for Public Advocate

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    (l-r) Melissa Mark-viverito, Ydanis Rodriguez, Dawn Smalls, Jumaane Williams, Rafael Espinal
    Danny O'Donnell, Michael Blake, Erich Ulrich, Nomiki Konst Ron Kim,


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  • In First Mailer of Public Advocate Race, Kim Targets Amazon, and Prominent Opponents

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    (portion of Ron Kim mailer)


    Assemblymember Ron Kim, a candidate for New York City Public Advocate, sent out the first mailed advertisement of his campaign this week, touting his early opposition to the deal between Amazon and New York, and contrasting it with other leading candidates in the race.

    The advertisement appears to be the first mailer of the race, a sprint to the February 26 special election to fill now-Attorney General Letitia James’ former seat. Notably, it jabs at four perceived frontrunners, highlighting their signatures on an October 2017

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: Public Advocate Candidate Michael Blake

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


    January 16, 2019 - Max & Murphy Podcast: Public Advocate Candidate Michael Blake

    michael blake 277pxMichael Blake is a member of the state Assembly from the Bronx and a candidate in the special election to become the next New York City Public Advocate, which will take place February 26. Blake, who worked in the Obama

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: Public Advocate Candidate Danny O'Donnell

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


    January 16, 2019 - Max & Murphy Podcast: Public Advocate Candidate Danny O'Donnell

    danny odonnell 277bDanny O'Donnell is a member of the state Assembly from Manhattan and a candidate for New York City Public Advocate in the special election set to take place February 26. O'Donnell joined the show to discuss his career in

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: Public Advocate Candidate Dawn Smalls

    mxm logo

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


    January 16, 2019 - Max & Murphy Podcast: Public Advocate Candidate Dawn Smalls

    dawn smalls orgDawn Smalls is an attorney who worked in the Clinton and Obama presidential administrations and, running in the special election to become New York City Public Advocate, a first-time candidate. She joined the show to discuss her

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  • 23 Candidates Submit Petitions to Get on February 26 Public Advocate Ballot

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    (Photo: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)


    The field of candidates running for public advocate in the special election scheduled for February 26 remains massive after 23 candidates submitted ballot petition signatures to the New York City Board of Elections by a Monday deadline to get on the ballot.

    Candidates were required to submit a minimum of 3,750 signatures though many of them went far beyond the requirement with some submitting more than 10,000. What remains to be seen is how many challenges are filed against certain candidates’

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  • Public Advocate Election Makes Case for Instant Runoff Voting

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    (photo: Gotham Gazette)


    If the 2018 election cycle is any indication, voter turnout is on the rise. Now is the time to take advantage of this moment to keep voters engaged in the electoral system and really give them a voice.

    One of the best ideas for promoting more diverse, open, and democratic elections is instant runoff voting (IRV). In New York City primaries, runoffs are forced for citywide elected positions when votes are split and no one candidate receives more than 40 percent of the vote. With IRV, voters rank candidates in order of preference. If no

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: Public Advocate Candidate Eric Ulrich

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


    January 9, 2019 - Max & Murphy Podcast: Public Advocate Candidate Eric Ulrich

    eric ulrich january 9City Council Member Eric Ulrich, a self-described "moderate" and "Rockefeller" Republican in the mold of former Mayor Michael Bloomberg, is running for New York City Public Advocate in the special election set for

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  • Everything You Need to Know About the Special Election for Public Advocate

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    Tish James voting (photo via Gotham Gazette)


    Updated as of January 29.

    In February, New Yorkers will have the opportunity to cast a ballot for a new public advocate in the first-ever special election for a citywide office. The current vacancy was created when the most recent officeholder, Letitia James, was officially sworn in as the state’s attorney general, a position she won in the November general election.

    The public advocate is the people’s representative, a watchdog and ombudsperson, with a post that has little direct influence over city

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: Public Advocate Candidate Rafael Espinal

    mxm logo

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


    January 2, 2019 - Max & Murphy Podcast: Public Advocate Candidate Rafael Espinal

    rafael espinal 1 2 wbai insetCity Council Member Rafael Espinal, a Brooklyn Democrat, is among the candidates running in the special election to become the next New York City Public Advocate. With the election set for Tuesday,

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  • My Vision for the Role of Public Advocate: Ron Kim

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    Ron Kim (via Kim campaign)


    I’m running for New York City Public Advocate to put people over corporations.

    In six years representing parts of Queens in the state Assembly, I’ve watched politicians at all levels of government bend over backwards to prioritize the needs of the largest companies in the world. Whether it’s bailing out predatory financial institutions after they send the world economy into a tailspin, giving away the store to corporations like Amazon to lure them into a city they wanted to come to anyway, or handing tax breaks to big developers who turn profits on

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  • Declared and Exploring Candidates for New York City Public Advocate

    10 candidates

    (l-r) Tish James, Ydanis Rodriguez, Melissa Mark-viverito, Jumaane Williams, Latrice Walker
    Rafael Espinal, Danny O'Donnell, Michael Blake, Erich Ulrich, Ron Kim


    There are roughly two dozen candidates who have officially declared or indicated they are exploring a run in the February special election for New York City Public Advocate, which will take place Tuesday, February 26.

    Attorney General-elect Letitia James officially vacates the office of New York City Public Advocate on January 1, setting off the next steps of the process, whereby Mayor Bill de

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  • Handicapping the Public Advocate Special Election

    Jumaane Williams Melissa Mark-Viverito

    Jumaane Williams & Melissa Mark-Viverito (photo: William Alatriste)


    New Yorkers who think they are done with elections until 2020 will be in for a rude awakening when Mayor Bill de Blasio calls a special election to fill the vacancy of the Public Advocate position. The position’s current occupant, Letitia James, was elected in November to become New York State Attorney General, and will switch posts at the beginning of January. In all likelihood, New York City voters will head to the polls again at the end of February. With so

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  • New York Democrats Won Big on Election Night, But Many Legislative Wins Were Razor-Thin

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    rally for now Senator-elect Gounardes (photo: @LizKrueger)


    The slumbering Democratic midterm electorate awakened this year, in New York and around the nation, and won significant victories. Across the country, the sum of the votes of the Democrats for every House of Representatives race in the nation is 60.1 million and counting. In 2014 only 35.6 million voted Democratic.

    While Democrats are celebrating their booming turnout and major wins including flipping control of the House of Representatives, there’s a big question Democrats need to ponder:

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  • Promising to 'Tell New Yorkers the Truth,' Mark-Viverito Launches Public Advocate Campaign

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    Melissa Mark-Viverito (photo: William Alatriste/City Council)


    Former City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito announced her bid for Public Advocate on Tuesday, becoming the latest candidate to throw their hat in the ring for the wide open race to succeed Attorney General-elect Letitia James.

    Mark-Viverito, a Democrat who served as speaker from 2014 through 2017 and has since served as Vice President of the Latino Victory Fund, which seeks to elect more Latinos to office, launched her campaign with two exclusive interviews, ...

  • At First Debate, Candidates for Public Advocate Pitch Visions for the Role

    The candidates, moderator and hosts

    The candidates, moderator and hosts (photo via Gotham Gazette)


    New York City Public Advocate Letitia James’ victory in the race for state attorney general has kicked off what will be roughly three months of jostling by candidates running to replace her. While James won’t be sworn in until January and the nonpartisan special election for her seat won’t be held till February, several candidates have already declared their interest in the seat and, on Wednesday evening, seven of them shared a stage at New York Law School, staking out their

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  • Agenda 2019: Queens District Attorney Race Will Center on Push for Reform

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    Rory Lancman (photo: John McCarten/City Council)


    This is part of AGENDA 2019, a joint Gotham Gazette-City Limits project
    Find the rest of the series here

    Off-year elections in New York City, like the one next year, tend to hold little significance and command minimal attention, with few positions on the ballot and no headlining executive race like mayor or governor. But in Queens, next year will offer a momentous opportunity for

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