By Anna Gustafson
State Assemblyman David Weprin (D-Little Neck) swept past Democratic challenger Bob Friedrich in Tuesday’s primary, garnering more than 68percent of the vote with 91 of 102 precincts counted by early Wednesday morning, according to unofficial election results..
Weprin, who has represented the 24th Assembly District since a special election in February, received 3,910votes, while 1,816number of people – or 31 percent – cast their ballots for Friedrich, the president of Glen Oaks Village.
“This shows it pays to run a positive campaign,”, said Weprin, who served on the City Council and was the Council Finance Committee chairman prior to his time in Albany. “I ran on my record in the Assembly and in the Council.”
Friedrich is also running on the Conservative line in the November general election.
Friedrich did not return a phone call for comment.
Republican Timothy Furey is also running to represent the district, which covers Bellerose, Bayside, Douglaston, Floral Park, Fresh Meadows, Glen Oaks, Hollis, Holliswood, Little Neck, New Hyde Park, Oakland Gardens and Queens Village.
Dolores Lucas, 75, of Jamaica Estates, said she voted for Weprin because of his commitment to the community.
“He’s been around a long time,” Lucas said. “He seems to be concerned about the neighborhood and he’s from a political family, which hopefully means he knows what he’s doing.”
A man from Hollis who did not want to be named said he cast his vote for Friedrich because he was tired of the “disruptive Albany politics.”
“I know David hasn’t been in there that long, but it’s time to get a new slate of characters in Albany,” he said. “Will it be any different with all new people? Maybe. Probably not. Who knows?”
Richard Rosenfeld, the coordinator at PS 178 in Hollis, said 97 people had come to vote at his site by Tuesday morning, which he said was a good turnout. Rosenfeld noted the new voting machines, which are being used for the first time in this primary, were working well for them. This was not the case throughout the city, as machines throughout the city malfunctioned to such an extent that Mayor Michael Bloomberg slammed the city Board of Elections’ management of Primary Day.
The new system, mandated by the federal Help America Vote Act, makes voters select their candidates by filling out ovals — something reminiscent of multiple-choice tests — on a paper ballot that is fed into a scanner.
During the campaign, Weprin focused his platform on restructuring the city Water Board, which he said has hit middle-class voters with far too many rate hikes.
Friedrich in his campaign has proposed that income legislators receive from outside employment be limited and that being a state elected official become a full-time job.
Reach reporter Anna Gustafson by e-mail at agustafson@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4574.
