Federal Court Rejects Incumbency Protection

posted by Michael Benjamin
Mon, 03/26/2012 - 9:42am

One immediate takeaway from the federal Court’s congressional redistricting plan and ruling is that incumbency protection (i.e., seniority and residence) should not be a factor when crafting a judicial plan (or any truly independent redistricting plan). The ruling, however, will have no influence on the bipartisan redistricting commission proposed in the recently passed legislation amending the state constitution.

Categories: congressional maps federal court New York State Assembly NY State Senate redistricting

My Take on This Year's Budget

posted by Liz Krueger
Fri, 04/01/2011 - 5:08pm

"This year, as we continue to face a struggling economy, both locally and nationally, there was no easy way to balance our State’s budget. Our State government has less money and more debt, while the need for public services has only increased. New York is not alone; 44 States are facing combined budget deficits of over $112 Billion this year. As legislators, we knew that painful cuts would have to be made to vital programs, and the only fair scenario was one in which the sacrifices were shared by all.

Categories: budget Liz Krueger ny State budget NY State Senate

NY State Senate: Challenging Carl Kruger

posted by mole333
Tue, 06/01/2010 - 6:01pm

I'd like to continue my focus on challenging incumbents in the state senate with the hope of improving the awful situation in Albany.

Probably the four worst Democrats in the NY State Senate were Hiram Monserrate (now thankfully ousted and soundly defeated), Pedro Espada, jr., Ruben Diaz, Sr., and Carl Kruger. These are the four traitors who threw control of the State Senate to the Republicans in a cynical power play that derailed reform in Albany. Furthermore Cal Kruger has actively campaigned for Republican Marty Golden (one of my other targets) in exchange for political favors.

Categories: 27th District brooklyn Carl Kruger Igor Oberman NY State Senate

Democratic Primary Election Tuesday Sept. 9th: Endorsements

posted by mole333
Mon, 09/08/2008 - 6:44pm

It was suggested that I post this here as well as DG even though I don't really consider this my stomping grounds. Still, since this was the first (of manY!) places I have been accused of being nasty and not knowing what I was talking about, I do get a certain amount of satisfaction being asked to post ; -)

I want to give both my endorsements for Tuesday's primary as well as the endorsements from some of the organizations I respect. First my endorsements:

Brooklyn's 1st Civil Court Seat: Devin Cohen

Categories: assembly Devin Cohen judicial races Marty Connor NY State Senate Paul Newell

NY TIMES ACKNOWLEDGES BALDEO'S STRENGTH IN DIVERSE SECTIONS OF STATE SENATE DISTRICT OVER BOTH ADDABBO & MALTESE

posted by SalRusso
Wed, 05/21/2008 - 4:01pm

The absence of political empowerment and representation in Richmond Hill/Ozone Park's growing economic base was highlighted by the New York Times in an article focusing on the upcoming State Senate battle for control of the state legislature by Democrats and Republicans. Referring to State Senate candidate and lawyer Albert Baldeo's groundbreaking candidacy, and how this district will be the lynch pin that determines whether democrats seize back control of the State Senate for the first times since 1965, the leading newspaper spotlighted the heavy demographic changes and economic contribution brought by new Americans, such as Guyanese, South Asian, Asian, Caribbean and Latin American immigrants. It also acknowledged how Baldeo almost defeated the long term incumbent State Senator Serphin Maltese, who was unchallenged since 1988, without any institutional backing from the Democratic political machinery, thereby putting this community on the political map as a political and economic force which can no longer be slighted.

The Times reported that the district spans working-class Queens, from Howard Beach in the south to Richmond Hill, now home to Punjabis, Surinamese and West Indians, among others, in the middle to Woodside, a neighborhood long home to the largest Irish community in Queens, which now boasts a sizable Asian population.

In 1990, 83 percent of the district’s residents identified themselves as white, according to census data analyzed by the Queens College department of sociology. By 2000, that number had dropped to 63 percent. The foreign-born population of the district jumped to 39 percent from 29 percent during that time, according to the data, with the largest increase among Hispanics.