Assemblymember Hakeem Jeffries faces Republican challenger Charles Brickous.

Jeffries is ending his first term in the Assembly and is viewed by many as a rising star in New York State politics. According to his Website, he has already introduced about 40 bills, including measures focusing on affordable housing and protecting tenants.

Information could not be found on Charles Brickous.

In the weeks leading up to the filing of the 32 Day Pre-General report, Jeffries raised $300. His closing balance was $48,809. A report for Brickous was not available.

The 57th district includes Fort Greene, Clinton Hill, Prospect Heights, Flatbush, parts of Park Slope and Bedford-

 

Jeffrey Dinowitz came to the Assembly, representing Riverdale, in 1994. In his bid for two more years, he faces Conservative Jeffrey Klapper

In his campaign to win re-election, Dinowitz reportedly challenged Klapper's signatures and got him knocked off the Republican Party line, Then, Klapper told the Riverdale Press, the Conservative Party offered him its slot. He accepted, he said, because " I think it's important to be a voice, to speak about what you believe in."

Klapper, who has a degree in library science and in law, works in a nursing home. In 1996, he ran against Dinowitz and a Republican and came in third with 4 percent of the vote. He said he would favor lowering all taxes -- including those on millionaires.

On his Website, Dinowitz stresses his record of providing services to his constituents and said he played a key role in negotiations over the construction of a water filtration plant in Van Cortlandt Park. He was a vocal opponent of Mayor Michael Bloomberg's plan to charge a fee to drive into Manhattan during the workweek.

In the period leading up the 32 Day Pre-General campaign finance report, Dinowitz had collected $525, but he had a campaign fund balance of $171,067. Klapper listed no contributions.

 

Democratic incumbent Annette Robinson faces Republican Henry Snead in next week's election.

Robinson is a former City Council member forced out of office in 2001 due to term limits. She joined the Assembly in 2002 and says she is specifically concerned with families and economic development.

Snead is a district leader for the county Republican Party and served as a local delegate to the Giuliani presidential campaign earlier this year.

Robinson most recently reported campaign contributions and expenditures in July. At that time, she had a negative balance of $22,655. Reports for Snead were not available.

The 54th district comprises Tompkins Park North, Weeksville and Bedford-Stuyvesant.

 

Incumbent Assemblymember Jose Rivera has had a lot to worry about over the past two month. After years as head of the Bronx Democratic Party, Rivera faces a challenge from a rival group of politicians calling themselves the "Rainbow Rebellion." The anti-Rivera faction gained strength on primary day, when Bronx residents voted against his for Surrogate Court judge and defeated his ally, State Sen. Efrain Gonzalez. Rivera also failed to defeat any of the Rainbow members up for re-election.

Now Rainbow Rebellion leaders want to replace Rivera with one of their own, State Assemblymember Carl Heastie. In September, the factions held dueling meetings -- one gathering re-elected Rivera leader, the other chose Heastie. The battle now rests in the hands of a court where a judge must determine which meeting was the real one.

But amid all the turmoil, one thing Rivera probably does not have to worry about is his return to the Assembly. He faces two opponents: Jose Torres on the Republican and Independence Party lines and Conservative Robert Lupo. Little information was available about either candidate.

Rivera first served in the assembly from 1982 and 1987, then moved over to the City Council. He returned to the legislature in 1990 and has been there ever since. A former member of the carpenters union and a union organizer, Rivera says he has worked "for jobs, better housing and social justice."

Rivera's most recent available campaign finance report, filed in July, showed him with $105,682. A report for Torres was not available and Lupo reported 

Incumbent Darryl Towns on the Democratic and Working Families lines faces Republican/Conservative Khorshed Chowdhury.

Towns was elected in 1992. During his tenure he has attempted to spur commercial revitalization in his district, which includes parts of Williamsburg, Bushwick and Bedford-Stuyvesant. Towns, the son of longtime U.S. Rep. Edolphus Towns, chairs the Committee on Banks.

Chowdhury, a native of Bangladesh, has unsuccessfully challenged Towns in 2002, 2004 and in 2006.

In 2006, Towns received 92 percent of the vote.

In the times leading up to the 32 Day Pre-General filing report, Towns had no campaign contributions. He ended the period with $13,642. Chowdhury reported "no activity."

 

The race in the 75th district on Manhattan's West Side represents a sharp contrast between a long-time politician and total newcomer.

Assemblymember Richard Gottfried has represented the 75th District since he was elected in 1970 -- when he was 23 years old. Now, a 22-year-old is seeking to unseat him.

Gottfried, a Democrat who also is endorsed by the Working Families Party, is the chair of the Committee on Health and has been a key player in much of the health legislation that has been passed in the past several decades.

His challenger, Saul Farber, who recently graduated from NYU, is backed both by the Republican and Independent parties. Farber's key issues are reform in Albany and decreasing spending.

Farber collected $38,749 in campaign contribution in the period leading up to the32 Day Pre-General filing report and had $47,145 on hand. Farber had raised $24,580 and had $21,644 on hand.

 

Republican Challenger Frances Cutrone faces a daunting task as the Republican takes on Democratic Assemblymember Vito Lopez, who also heads Brooklyn's Democratic party.

Information could not be found on Cutrone.

Lopez joined the Assembly in 1984. He chairs the Committee on Housing, where he rewrote the state's 421-a tax exemption program, which is supposed to spark the development of affordable apartments. Some say the bill favored the controversial development Atlantic Yards.

Lopez who took in $70.768 in the period covered by the 32 Day Pre-General filing report had almost $980,000 on hand. There was no filing information on Cutrone.

District 53 includes Bushwick and Williamsburg.

 

Party Leader Runs Again

Assemblymember Jonathan Bing has represented the 73rd District since he was first elected in 2002. The former lawyer, who will appear on the Democratic and Working Families Party lines, is a prolific author of legislation, authoring 36 pieces of legislation since he was elected to the Assembly.

The seat had been held by a Republican, John Ravitz, for 12 years before Bing was elected, and this affluent East Side area, known as the "silk stocking district," had been a Republican stronghold for years.

Bing defeated his Republican challenger after Ravitz stepped down in 2002, and Republican strength in the area seems to have ebbed. This year, David Casavis, who formerly worked for other GOP candidates, represents the Republican cause. In an interview with the West Side Spirit, he held out little chance of a win.

"I'll at least restore a little dignity," Casavis said. "What I'd like to do is break 30 percent. Gosh if I could break 40 percent, that'd be a dream."

In his 32 Day Pre-General filing report, Bing reported raising $15,920 in the past months and having a balance at the end of September of $280,300. Casavis had raised $45 and ended the period with $345

 

Incumbent Democratic Assemblymember Felix Ortiz faces two challengers: Luis Garcia on the Republican line and Grace Coen on the Conservative line.

A native of Puerto Rico, Ortiz served in the army during the 1980s and won election to the state Assembly in 1994. He authored the nation's first law to ban the use of a hand-held cell phone while driving. He is the president of the National Hispanic Caucus of State Legislators and chairs the Assembly's Committee on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse.

Little information could be found on Ortiz's opponents.

Ortiz took in no contributions for the period covered by the 32 Day Pre-General report and had almost $100,000 on hand at the end of September. Garcia and Coen showed no contributions

 

For more than three decades, Joseph Lentol has represented northern Brooklyn. He faces a challenge from Republican Teresa Puccio.

Lentol is a former assistant district attorney for Kings County. Both his father and grandfather served in the state legislature. He is chair of the Committee on Codes.

His challenger, Puccio, is a district leader for the county Republican Party.

During the period covered by the32 Day Pre-General report, Lentol collected $28,300 in contributions for a total on-hand of $242,780. Itemized data for Puccio was not available.