By Daniel Massey
Melinda Katz may be the overwhelming favorite to win the District 29 race for City Council, but her four opponents have not stopped campaigning for the seat occupied by longtime Councilwoman Karen Koslowitz (D-Forest Hills).
Katz soundly defeated Lynn Schulman in the Sept. 25 Democratic Primary, capturing 72 percent of the vote. In a heavily Democratic district, the director of community boards for Borough President Claire Shulman, who has the backing of the Queens Democratic Organization, is expected to make an even stronger showing at the polls Nov. 6.
In interviews last week, all five candidates said the next council member will have to be equipped to deal with the new safety concerns facing the city since the Sept. 11 attacks. Realizing they face a tough opponent in Katz, Conservative Norbert Chwat, Green Jeanette Evans, Republican Rene Lobo and the Independence Party’s Joseph Tiraco all attempted to distinguish themselves from the pack in the race to represent Forest Hills, Rego Park and parts of Maspeth, Kew Gardens and Elmhurst.
Chwat, a supervisor for the New York State Enforcement Agency, said party politics should not play a role in elections anymore after the Twin Towers disaster.
“What’s needed right now in the City Council are not people concerned with political connections, but people who are specialists, people who are interested in making sure the city is being taken care of,” he said.
A registered Democrat running on the Conservative line, he pointed to his role as an Army intelligence officer during World War II and his efforts addressing sanitation issues, safety on Queens Boulevard and library access for the disabled with the Forest Hills Action League as reasons he is qualified for the job.
To Evans, the grassroots nature of her campaign is its strength. “I haven’t accepted any money from lobbyists,” she said. “When I go out on the streets, I can really go and talk honestly about what the average person feels is important.”
Since Sept. 11, immigration has moved to the center of Evans’ campaign. She said greed controls current U.S. immigration policy, which she described as “too high, too fast and not managed well.” If elected, she said she will advocate curbing the number of immigrants allowed into the Unites States. “Limits to immigration would be in our best interests so it would be better controlled,” she said.
Lobo, the only South Asian candidate still running for office in Queens, said the city now more than ever needs politicians who can “build bridges of understanding and tolerance in our communities.” Though the veteran broadcast journalist will still concentrate on topics such as public safety, senior services and education, she said new issues have been illuminated in the past weeks. Pointing to attacks on Muslims and Sikhs since Sept. 11 she said the politicians must understand the needs and sensitivities of new immigrants.
“The person who is running has to understand the different makeups of constituents and work with them,” she said. “If one doesn’t understand that, that person is not going to be a true candidate.”
Tiraco said he is running because he feels a one-party system is detrimental to democracy. “When you have all Democrats, the only people who are going to be heard are Democratic voices,” he said. “Somebody has got to speak for the non-Democrats.”
The computer developer said “everything” about his campaign and the district’s needs have changed since the World Trade Center assault. “There really only is one issue at this time and that is the security of the city,” he said. “Without that we don’t survive as a society and everything else is meaningless.”
Meanwhile, the front-runner Katz has been doing her own campaigning. She represented much of the district in the state Assembly for five years before leaving to run for the U.S. House seat that was vacated by Charles Schumer in 1998. She lost that election to U.S. Rep Anthony Weiner (D-Forest Hills) by less than 500 votes and is taking no chances this time around.
“I never take anyone’s vote for granted and never take their friendship for granted, she said. “You never stop trying to earn the respect of your constituents.”
While Katz agreed with her opponents that there needs to be a new focus on safety, she said many of District 29’s concerns remain the same as before Sept. 11.
“The needs of the district are always going to be constant in a few respects,” she said. “You’re always going to need education. We still have the same overcrowded schools that we’ve had since the start of the campaign.”
Although Katz is heavily favored, her opponents are not conceding the election.
“With this political climate, the president, governor and mayor are Republican,” said Lobo. “It shows that sometimes the electorate is going to look at not just party labels but what a candidate stands for.”
Chwat said the high percentage of Democrats in the district did not concern him.
“People like (late Mayor John) Lindsay and (Mayor Rudolph) Giuliani have had the same problem, but they presented a picture of what they could do and what they had done and they were voted in,” he said.
Chwat admonished those who declared the race over. “Nobody has been elected,” he said. “Nobody should be told that they are it before Nov. 6.”
Reach reporter Daniel Massey by e-mail at Timesledger@aol.com or call 229-0300, Ext. 156.
