Gotham Gazette

The Place for New York Policy and politics

Elections

Elections

  • 5 Key Moments from the First Democratic Mayoral Primary Debate

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    De Blasio & Albanese on NY1


    Mayor Bill de Blasio, a first-term Democrat pursuing reelection this fall, faced off against Sal Albanese on Wednesday at the first of two primary debates ahead of the September 12 vote. Over the course of 90 minutes at the Symphony Space on the Upper West Side, the two shared a number of tense exchanges as they made their pitches to voters. De Blasio offered a continuation of his first-term accomplishments in tackling inequality, while Albanese attempted to present himself as the alternative to a mayor who he

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  • 5 Things to Watch at First De Blasio-Albanese Debate

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    Albanese & de Blasio in 2013 via NY1


    “A win for me is making the case that de Blasio has not been a good mayor and making the case that I can be a good mayor,” Sal Albanese, putting it simply, told Gotham Gazette on Monday, a little more than 48 hours before he was to take the stage against Mayor Bill de Blasio in the first of two Democratic primary debates.

    The debate, a 90-minute affair that will air at 7 p.m. Wednesday on NY1 television and WNYC radio, is sure to be lively. The two participants have known each other a long

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: Previewing the First Mayoral Debate

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


    August 22, 2017 - Previewing the First Mayoral Debate

    On Wednesday, August 23, Mayor Bill de Blasio and former City Council Member Sal Albanese will meet for the first debate of the 2017 Democratic mayoral primary. De Blasio is seen as a heavy favorite heading toward the September 12 vote, but Albanese has a major opportunity given the one-on-one, broadcast debate that will be at 7 p.m. Wednesday on NY1 television and WNYC radio (also brought to you by other

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  • For Mark-Viverito’s Seat: Leading Candidates with Long Community Resumes

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    Ruben Diaz Jr. introduces Diana Ayala, alongside Melissa Mark-Viverito (photo: @jtaranto)


    Melissa Mark-Viverito, the Speaker of the City Council, is term-limited and leaving office at the end of this year, which, aside from indicating that there will be a new leader of the Council, means her position representing the Council’s 8th District is “open.”

    Since 2005, Mark-Viverito has represented the district, which includes East Harlem and parts of the South Bronx. New York State Assemblymember Robert Rodriguez, whose district encompasses much of District 8, and Diana

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  • De Blasio, Cumbo Teams Mum on Campaign Aid

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    Mayor de Blasio & Council Member Cumbo (arm raised) (photo: Rob Bennett/Mayor's Office)


    As she seeks re-election, City Council Member Laurie Cumbo has key advantages that come with incumbency -- name recognition, access to donors, and a degree of institutional support. Included in that support is the backing of Mayor Bill de Blasio, a fellow Democrat also running for a second term this fall, though the mayor and his team appear to be helping Cumbo quietly, in part because of the complicated politics surrounding a key issue in her district, the

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  • The Week Ahead in New York Politics, August 21

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    New York City Hall


    What to watch for this week in New York politics:

    Mayor de Blasio was back in town this weekend after a four-day vacation in Rhode Island. The mayor participated in several weekend evetns. He's not only returning this week to work at City Hall, but he's facing former City Council Member Sal Albanese in the first Democratic mayoral primary election debate on Wednesday night. It will be must-see TV on NY1 or must-hear radio on WNYC -- along with those two networks, the debate is also being

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  • Inside the Numbers: Mayoral Campaign Spending

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    Mayor de Blasio at his reelection headquarters (@BilldeBlasio)


    As New York City’s campaign season hurtles toward the September 12 primaries and November 7 general election, bringing new flurries of fundraising and spending from mayoral candidates, attention has largely been focused on the ‘raising,’ with a few recent donations getting ...

  • Five Democrats Will Be On The Mayoral Ballot, But Only Two Will Debate

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    Mayoral candidate Robert Gangi (photo:@GangiForMayor)


    The first official debate in the Democratic mayoral primary is set for Wednesday, August 23, where Mayor Bill de Blasio will face former City Council Member Sal Albanese. But three more Democrats, all of whom will be on the September 12 ballot, failed to qualify for the debate and are crying foul that the Campaign Finance Board’s eligibility criteria are excluding them from

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: Representative vs. Substantive Representation

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


    August 15, 2017: Representative vs. Substantive Representation, with Dr. Christina Greer and Alexis Grenell

    grenell max greerOn this episode of the Max & Murphy podcast we're without City Limits' Jarrett Murphy, who is on a much-deserved vacation, but joined by political analysts Dr. Christina Greer, a political science

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  • A Rarity: City Council Candidate Releases Detailed Reform Agenda

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    City Council candidate Keith Powers (photo: @KeithPowersNYC)


    Candidates across the city this year are running for City Council on all sorts of issues, but only one has released a detailed list of government, campaign finance, and voting reform proposals. That agenda, called “

    The Deadline to Register to Vote this Fall is Fast Approaching

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    New Yorkers line up to vote (credit: Samar Khurshid/Gotham Gazette)


    New York City has roughly 6.6 million residents of voting age but only about 4.99 million registered voters, according to rough estimates from the American Community Survey and the state Board of Elections. The city’s municipal primary election is a little over a month away, on September 12, and ...

  • On the Lower East Side, Council Contenders Seek to Upend Favorite for Open Seat

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    Carlina Rivera (photo: Samar Khurshid/Gotham Gazette)


    One of the 10 “open” City Council seat races is taking place on the East Side of Manhattan, in District 2, currently represented by Rosie Mendez, who is term-limited out of office. Several candidates, including Mendez’s preferred successor, Carlina Rivera, are competing in the Democratic primary, which will determine who holds the seat next given it is a staunchly Democratic district.

    Rivera, Mendez’s former legislative director, has a good deal of momentum and support from the

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  • In Manhattan, District Leader Maps Redrawn Last Minute and Hard to Find

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    Kim Moscaritolo and Adam Roberts, district leaders for Manhattan's Assembly District 76, Part B


    While much of the media and public’s attention is focussed on New York’s mayoral and City Council races, lesser known elections are also slated to take place this fall.

    On primary day, September 12,

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  • Removal of Last Primary Opponent Could Cost Malliotakis

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    GOP mayoral candidate Nicole Malliotakis (photo: @NMalliotakis)


    After Michel Faulkner shifted his mayoral campaign to one for comptroller and real estate executive Paul Massey suspended his altogether, State Assemblymember Nicole Malliotakis' campaign began referring to her as "the presumptive Republican nomee in the race for Mayor." Still, the only thing standing between Malliotakis and the GOP nomination was wealthy businessman Rocky De La Fuente, a candidate who recently relocated from California.

    That hurdle was removed on Tuesday, when

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  • There Will Be Three Big Questions on Your Ballot in November

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    Voting (photo: Samar Khurshid/Gotham Gazette)


    A state constitutional amendment slightly loosening stringent environmental protections in the Adirondacks and Catskills in certain cases will be on the ballot this fall, the state Board of Elections announced this week.

    The legislation, which has passed through two consecutive sessions of the Legislature in order to make it onto the ballot, allows for select infrastructure projects deemed necessary for the safety and economic vitality of nearby areas to be installed without a

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  • Mayoral Candidate Provides Brands and Logos for $5 Million In-Kind Campaign Contribution

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    A Michael Tolkin tradmarked brand


    Michael Tolkin, a 32-year-old entrepreneur and mayoral candidate who reported giving his own campaign a $5 million in-kind contribution – goods and services instead of cash – has provided an estimated breakdown of the highly unusual contribution’s components. Tolkin outlined what he is giving to his campaign on Tuesday, the same day he won approval from the city Board of Elections (BOE) to appear on the September 12 Democratic mayoral primary ballot.

    The in-kind donation

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  • Queens Council Primary Pits Assembly Member Versus Disgraced Former Rep

     Francisco Moya City Council

    Francisco Moya (photo via Moya's Facebook)


    Julissa Ferreras-Copeland, City Council Member for District 21 in Queens and chair of the powerful finance committee, shook up city politics in June when she announced she would not be running for re-election. Now, with her seat up for grabs and several potential candidates removed from the ballot by the Board of Elections, there is a dramatic head-to-head Democratic primary matchup to fill the City Council seat.

    The contest is between State Assemblymember Francisco

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  • 20 Races to Watch in the 2017 City Election Cycle

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    City Council members & candidates (photo: Samar Khurshid/Gotham Gazette)


    The 2017 city elections are quickly approaching, with party primaries to be held September 12, followed by the general election on November 7. The offices up for election are the three citywide posts of mayor, comptroller, and public advocate; the five borough president positions; all 51 City Council seats; and two district attorneys (Manhattan and Brooklyn).

    The citywide positions all have Democratic incumbents seeking a second term: Mayor Bill de Blasio, Public

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: The Mayoral Race with Top Political Strategists

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


    July 31, 2017: Republican strategist Mollie Fullington and Democratic strategist Rebecca Katz join Max & Murphy to discuss the 2017 New York City mayoral race.

    max murphy katz fullingtonMollie Fullington used to work for Governor George Pataki and recently handled press and communications for mayoral candidate Paul Massey.

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  • Democratic Mayoral Candidates Talk 'Faith in New York'

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    De Blasio at the Faith in New York interview (photo: @FaithinNewYork)


    The four main Democratic mayoral candidates had a chance on Thursday to publicly show how far to the progressive left they are, appearing just over six weeks from primary day at a series of open discussions with Faith Over Fear Coalition, a citywide coalition of more than 90 congregations and more than 25 faith and justice groups, convened by Faith in New York, an advocacy organization that launched in 2013.

    Faith in New York (FINY), which describes itself as a

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  • Rare Green Party Primary in Brooklyn City Council Race

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    (Credit via @Jabari2017)


    Despite laying claim to less than one percent of party affiliated registered voters within New York City, the Green Party has two candidates competing in a rare primary this year.

    Candidates Jabari Brisport and Scott Hutchins are facing each other

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  • Republican Citywide Candidates Hopeful Despite Slow Fundraising

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    GOP Comptroller candidate Michel Faulkner


    Ahead of the citywide elections, Republican candidates for Comptroller and Public Advocate -- Michel Faulkner and J.C. Polanco, respectively -- have struggled to raise funds for their campaigns, trailing their respective opponents by large sums.

    With just over three months before Election Day, both Faulkner and Polanco need to significantly increase their fundraising prowess to run competitive races against Comptroller Scott Stringer and Public Advocate Letitia James, both Democrats.

    Faulkner, a former New York Jet and

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  • For 2018, The Center Must Hold

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    Gov. Cuomo rallying to flip NY House seats (photo: NY Democratic Party)


    If the national Women’s March was any indication, we are in for a Democratic tidal wave come 2018. We’re only seven months into 2017, of course. But if such a wave does occur, then the Republican Party in Congress will only revert back to ideological extremes and obstructionism.

    Why? Because the seats up for grabs are largely the 50 seats held by moderate Tuesday Group caucus members. As their influence wanes, the influence of the Freedom Caucus and other extreme conservatives will

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  • Max & Murphy Podcast: Mayoral Candidate Bo Dietl

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


    Max & Murphy is a podcast focused on New York City politics and policy hosted by Ben Max of Gotham Gazette and Jarrett Murphy of City Limits. Recent episodes of the podcast can be found here and can be dowloaded from iTunes and other podcast networks. The podcast began with a focus on housing in early 2016, but has expanded into other areas,

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  • Bo Dietl: Running City Government 'Isn't Rocket Science'

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    Bo Dietl at his office (photo: Ben Max)


    In his 50th floor corner office in Midtown, the characteristically brash private security CEO Bo Dietl made the case Monday morning for his outsider mayoral candidacy. Appearing on the Max & Murphy podcast, Dietl explained his brand, his political evolution from Republican to Democrat, and his independent candidacy for the city’s top job.

    A former NYPD detective who gained celebrity status and became a Fox News personality, Dietl is always ready to talk. “Everybody knows Bo Dietl, I have a brand,

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