By Michelle Han
This is in a borough where there are about five times as many registered Democrats as there are Republicans.
“We're expecting a huge turnout this year because there's a lot of interest in the presidential and senate races,” said Naomi Bernstein, a spokeswoman for the city Board of Elections. Nearly 62 percent of registered voters turned out for the presidential election in 1996, where the Clinton-Gore ticket won easily in Queens.
The presidential ticket of Al Gore and Joseph Lieberman will likely get its share of Democratic votes in Queens as will U.S. senate candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton, who has visited the borough a number of times in her campaign swings through the state.
Republicans George W. Bush and Dick Cheney have avoided campaign visits to Queens altogether, while Gore campaigned in southeast Queens during his primary race against Bill Bradley. The GOP's U.S. senate candidate Rick Lazio has campaigned in Queens a number of times as has Clinton.
Some 567,141 Queens residents are registered Democrats, 139,715 are Republicans – a ratio of roughly 5:1 – and 166,493 are unaffiliated with any party in figures compiled as of Oct. 31, Bernstein said.
The Queens County Democratic Organization has been busy supporting Democrats at all levels of government, hosting fund-raisers and get-out-the-vote campaigns over the past several months for the presidential ticket and U.S. senate candidate as well as for incumbents and challengers in the state Senate and Assembly.
A particular focus of the Democratic leadership in Queens and the state Senate has been incumbent Frank Padavan's (R-Bellerose) 11th Senate District seat in northeast Queens. A win by Democratic challenger Rory Lancman, a community activist from Fresh Meadows who has mounted a vigorous effort, would help shift the balance of power in Albany, where the Republican party holds the majority in the Senate by a mere six seats.
State Sen. Serphin Maltese (R-Glendale), the Queens County Republican Party chairman, said that despite the targeting of Padavan's seat, the 14-term veteran senator is on firm political ground.
“He's brought a lot of money into the district, he's been out there, he is a hardworking member of the state Senate,” Maltese said.
But the minority party in Queens recognizes the difficulty of running candidates against the strong Democratic Party incumbents, who benefit from name recognition and the party's ability to churn out foot soldiers to help with campaign work.
“There is absolutely no question the incumbents advance. Incumbents have such an advantage it's incredible,” Maltese said. “What we're looking to do is devote a lot of time and effort to the Lazio campaign.”
Lazio's campaign has supplied the Queens GOP with campaign material and Lazio himself was scheduled to be honored by the Republican Party at a dinner Thursday at Terrace on the Park.
In local races, U.S. Rep Gary Ackerman (D-Bayside) in northeast Queens faces Republican Ed Elkowitz and Ann T. Robinson of the Right to Life Party. U.S. Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-St. Albans) is running unopposed in southeast Queens, and U.S. Rep. Joseph Crowley (D-Jackson Heights) in northern Queens and the Bronx faces four challengers: Republican Rose Robles Birtley, Christea Garafalia of the Green Party, Paul Gilman of the Green Party, and Conservative Robert E. Hurley.
U.S. Rep. Nita Lowey (D-Rego Park) in central Queens and Westchester has two minority party challengers from Westchester, and U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-Astoria) faces Republican Adrienne Rhodes.
U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-Forest Hills) faces Democratic City Councilman Noach Dear, who lost the Democratic nomination to Weiner in the primary but is running as a Republican in the general election.
In the state Senate, Ada Smith (D-Jamaica) is running unopposed; Malcolm Smith (D-St. Albans) faces Cynthia Jenkins on the Independence and Green parties lines; Daniel Hevesi (D-Forest Hills) faces Conservative Walter Lamp; George Onorato (D-Long Island City) faces Republican Katina Kiourkenidis; Serphin Maltese (R-Glendale) faces Dorothy Williams-Pereira of the Green Party; and Toby Stavisky (D-Flushing) faces Josephine Jones of the Green Party.
In the state Assembly, Mark Weprin (D-Bayside) faces Republican Philip Sica; Michael Cohen (D-Forest Hills) faces Republican Michael Roemmelt; William Scarborough (D-St. Albans) is challenged by William J. Smith of the Independence Party, Pauline Rhodd-Cummings (D-Far Rockaway) faces Michael Duvalle of the Independence Party; Barbara Clark (D-Queens Village) is challenged by Republican Robert Hutchison; Ivan Lafayette (D-Jackson Heights) faces Republican Rafael Merino; Catherine Nolan (D-Ridgewood) faces Republican Alice Lemos; Anthony Seminerio (D-Richmond Hill) is challenged by Republican William Johnert; and Democrat Michael Gianaris faces Republican Vincent Tabone.
Assembly members Brian McLaughlin (D-Flushing), Ann- Margaret Carrozza (D-Bayside), Nettie Mayersohn (D-Fresh Meadows), Margaret Markey (D-Elmhurst) and Vivian Cook (D-South Ozone Park) are unopposed.
