By Zach Patberg
“I didn't expect it to be so soon,” admitted Anthony Como, who left the Queens district attorney's office April 1 to run on the Republican, Conservative and Independent tickets. “I'm unemployed right now, so it'll help to get a paycheck soon.”Andrew Hevesi, who is running on the Democratic line, took a leave of absence as director of community affairs for Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum pending the outcome of the election or as he put it, “until we win this thing.”The seat in the 28th Assembly District, which covers Forest Hills, Rego Park, Glendale and Middle Village, opened up last month when Cohen, a Democrat, resigned to take a position in the private sector and to attend to family obligations.Since then Como and Hevesi have been knocking on doors, hitting up civic meetings, shaking hands at subway stops and brunching with seniors in their attempts to keep pace with an accelerated campaign.Although both candidates have led distinguished careers in the borough, their work has dealt in separate arenas — and their focus on different issues shows as much.As an ex-prosecutor, Como, 31, has expressed concern primarily with criminal matters, such as drunk driving, sex offenses and graffiti. If he takes office, he said he plans to aid other state legislators in passing a bill that would toughen laws and raise penalties for those who kill or maim while intoxicated behind the wheel.The bill, named Vasean's Law after an 11-year-old boy who died in an Oct. 22 accident in Flushing, was spurred by relentless lobbying from the boy's mother.”I've seen firsthand what needs to change with drunk driving laws,” said Como, who in his four years with the Queens DA investigated numerous such accidents.Other legislation Como plans to pursue calls for a tighter leash on first-time sexual offenders and better notification to the community on their release. He cited 101 sexual predators living in his district alone.In addition, he said he planned to battle graffiti with legislation that would impose felony charges on second-time offenders as is the case with auto theft and weapon possession.Taking a slightly different strategic approach, Hevesi, 31, who comes from a long line of politicians, harped on more non-criminal and day-to-day issues, such as the dangerous stretch of Queens Boulevard in Forest Hills and the controversial Walgreens in Middle Village.The former chief of staff for state Sen. Jeff Klein (D-Bronx) said he intended to take up Cohen's fight to put speed-trap traffic cameras along the seven-mile strip known as the “Boulevard of Death,” which has taken the lives of more than 80 pedestrians since 1993. Asked about the drugstore giant, Walgreens, which has proposed opening an outlet at 80-01 Eliot Ave., Hevesi said, “I think we have plenty of 24-hour drugstores in the area.”It is debatable how much sway Hevesi could have on this issue, however, since the Walgreens site falls just outside his district.Despite a division in party lines, both candidates consider the other a worthy adversary.”Anthony is very smart,” Hevesi said. “And he served Queens well in the district attorney's office.”Como, who lives in Middle Village, threw Hevesi equal respect, but questioned his opponent's grasp on the concerns dominating the district's communities. “He admitted he worked mostly in the Bronx and didn't know much about the issues in this neighborhood,” Como said. At a recent Juniper Park Civic Association meeting Hevesi conceded that he was somewhat unfamiliar with the going-ons in the area since he had spent two years working for Klein outside the borough.Residents at last Thursday's meeting were also taken back by Hevesi's admission.”People were quite surprised, I was surprised,” said Robert Holden, the civic's president. Hevesi later clarified that his comment was intended to invite people to approach him with concerns they might be more familiar with.He and his family have lived in Forest Hills for decades, with his father, Alan Hevesi, serving the district as an assemblyman for 22 years before becoming city comptroller and then assuming the state post. His brother, Daniel Hevesi, represented the area as state senator until 2002.Indeed, the Hevesi name carries considerable weight.”Not having as popular a name as Hevesi, I have to work doubly hard,” Como said.Civic leaders seem to hold a high opinion of both challengers.”Both are good guys and viable candidates,” Holden said. “It'll be a good race.”Forest Hills Civic Association President Barbara Stuchinski had the same praise.”You have two terrific candidates,” she told residents at a Community Board 8 meeting last week. “Now go out and vote.”Reach reporter Zach Patberg by e-mail at news@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 155.
