With midterm elections coming up on Tuesday, November 7, and key state positions including governor and attorney general as well as Queens seats in the senate and assembly up for grabs, candidates are making last minute pushes to mobilize their voting base.
Although many of the key positions, including the race for governor between Eliot Spitzer and John Faso and U.S. Senate between incumbent Hillary Rodham Clinton and John Spencer appear to be lacking suspense with Democrats Spitzer and Clinton far ahead in the polls, officials from both parties are preaching the importance of voter turnout.
“With Eliot Spitzer and Hillary Clinton at the top of the ticket, there may be an unprecedented, strong turnout of voters who want to elect Democrats throughout New York, and particularly in Queens this year,” Congressmember and Queens County Democratic Chair Joseph Crowley said. “Of course, on November 7th, we will know the full extent.”
State Senator Serphin Maltese, who is the chair of the Queens County Republican Organization, cited a State Senate race from two years ago in Westchester County with more than 100,000 votes, which was decided by a mere 16 votes.
“It's very plain to see that every vote counts,” Maltese said. “Despite the fact that Faso and the Republicans do not have a lot of money, I think there is a lot of enthusiasm for our candidates that will hopefully turn out our base.”
Current polls show that Democratic Attorney General Candidate Andrew Cuomo has a sizeable lead against Westchester District Attorney Jeanine Pirro, while incumbent State Comptroller Alan Hevesi may have a closer race than expected against Republican Christopher Callaghan, former Treasurer of Saratoga County. The Comptroller race could be close, thanks in large part to a scathing ethics committee report alleging Hevesi participated in illegal activity by having a state employee chauffeur his sick wife for three years.
The Queens County Board of Elections in partnership with the city and state boards, have worked to increase access to polling places, especially for senior citizens or those with disabilities by eliminating obstacles that may prevent them from accessing the voting machines.
In addition, the New York City Board of Elections website, https://vote.nyc.ny.us/pollingplaces.html has made it easier for voters to find out where they should be voting.
Voters can also call 1-866-VOTE-NYC or e-mail the city board of elections at vote@boe.nyc.ny.us. Polls will open at 6 a.m. on Tuesday, November 7 and remain open until 9 p.m.
CAMPAIGN 2006 AT A GLANCE
Governor
John Faso - Republican
Faso received the Republican nomination for Governor earlier this year after his time in the legislature earned him a reputation for curbing government spending, creating jobs, ending parole for violent felons and prohibiting questionable borrowing by the state.
Eliot Spitzer - Democrat
Spitzer has been the New York State Attorney General since 1999. During his time in office, he has investigated conflicts of interest by investment banks, illegal trading practices by mutual funds and bid rigging in the insurance industry. Through his work has recovered billions of dollars for small investors.
Comptroller
Christopher Callaghan - Republican
For the past 10 years, Callaghan has been the Treasurer of Saratoga County until he resigned in July to pursue his candidacy for the Comptroller.
Alan Hevesi -Democrat
Hevesi has served as the New York State Comptroller since 2002, after spending two terms as the city's comptroller and more than 22 years serving the public as an Assemblymember.
Attorney General
Jeanine Pirro - Republican
Pirro was elected Westchester County's first woman District Attorney in 1993 (having being elected Westchester’s first woman County Court judge in 1990), and she has expanded the offices for a Special Prosecutions Division to investigate and prosecute, not only cases of domestic violence and child abuse, but also elder abuse and sex crimes.
Andrew Cuomo - Democrat
After being selected by President Bill Clinton, Cuomo served as the Secretary for the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) from 1996-2002 where he transformed HUD from a bureaucratic backwater to a revitalized engine for economic development.
U.S. Senator
John Spencer - Republican
In 1996, Spencer became the Republican mayor of Yonkers, New York, which is the state's fourth-largest city and became known for standing for conservative principles.
Hillary Rodham Clinton - Democrat
The former first lady, Clinton was elected to the U.S. Senate in New York in 2000, and during her six years in office, she has worked to strengthen the economy and opportunities as well as serving on a number of powerful senate committees.
State Senate Races
District 10
Jereline Hunter - Republican
Hunter has run for the state assembly in 2004 and the city council in 2005, and has been a community activist in downtown Jamaica for many years.
Shirley L. Huntley - Democrat
Huntley, who defeated Democratic incumbent Ada Smith in the primary this past September, has been involved in the community as the head of the Community Council for Education District 28 and a long-time member of Community Board 12.
District 11
Frank Padavan - Republican
For 32 years, Padavan has been a representative in the New York State Senate, and in 2003, he was appointed Vice President Pro Tempore of the Senate. He was also appointed the co-chair the New York State Senate Task Force on Government Reform in late 2004.
Nora Marino - Democrat
For the past 10 years, Marino has been in private practice as an attorney in the community, specializing in negligence and personal injury, also engaging in other areas of law including matrimonial, discrimination, landlord/tenant and contract law.
District 15
Serphin Maltese - Republican
Voters first elected Maltese to the New York State Senate in November of 1988, and since then, he has become known as a leading advocate for veterans throughout the state, senior citizens and the middle class, and he has been instrumental in the enactment of many significant initiatives to benefit these groups.
Albert Baldeo - Democrat
Baldeo currently has a law practice in Southeast Queens to benefit the public, senior citizens, small businesses, housing, real estate, corporate and immigration law, and he has been involved in many community organizations in Southeast Queens throughout the years.
NY State Assembly Races
District 22
Christopher Migliaccio - Republican
Migliaccio, 23, has spent eight years learning in Senator Serphin Maltese's office, most recently serving as his community relations director. In addition to that experience, he is studying to be a lawyer, and he believes that will benefit him if elected.
Ellen Young - Democrat
After working in Councilmember John Liu's office as a district administrator, Ellen Young believes she is qualified to be the next Assemblymember from Flushing. Currently, Young is a District Leader and has volunteered in the community for more than 20 years.
District 23
Stuart Mirsky - Republican
While Assistant Commissioner for Operations at the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, between 1996 and 2002, Mirsky managed that agency’s $100 million multi-year capital budget, ran its Health Police force, its transportation and facilities services divisions, materials management, telecommunications, printing and graphics.
Audrey Pheffer - Democrat
Since 1987, Pheffer has served her constituents in the State Assembly, winning by a substantial margin every time she has come up for reelection. In 1995, she was named chair of the Assembly Consumer Affairs and Protection Committee and has chaired the Assembly’s Election Law Committee and the Subcommittee on Outreach and Oversight of Senior Citizen Programs.
District 28
Dolores Maddis - Republican
Maddis, who is a community activist, received the endorsement of the Queens Republican Party, and she believes her experience will help her prevail in the Assembly race. She wants to increase housing available for the middle class in order to keep them in the neighborhood.
Andrew Hevesi -- Democrat
Hevesi was elected to the 28th Assembly District in a special election on May 10, 2005, to fill the seat left vacant by the resignation of former Assemblyman Michael Cohen. During his first year in the Assembly, Hevesi served on a number of committees including Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, Consumer Affairs and Protection, Corporations, Authorities and Commissions, Energy, Labor, and Racing & Wagering.
