By Ivan Pereira
Political contenders old and new have thrown their hats into the ring to determine who will represent parts of southeast Queens for the next two years, but so far they have not built a strong financial war chest, campaign finance records show.
The city Campaign Finance Board has listed four candidates who will be challenging City Councilman Ruben Wills (D-Jamaica) during this year’s special election for the 28th Council District seat.
The election is the final part of the process that was done to replace the late Thomas White, who died last August, eight months into his second term as representative for the district that covers the neighborhoods of Jamaica, Richmond Hill, Rochdale and South Ozone Park.
In the November special election that decided who would fill the seat for one year, Wills defeated Nicole Paultre-Bell, Albert Baldeo, Allan Jennings, Charles Bilal, Harpreet Toor and Martha Butler.
The councilman has collected $29,015 in contributions so far and spent $8,345 for his re-election campaign, according to campaign finance records. His largest donation came from a Queens political action committee, Local 1182 Political Action, which gave $2,500, the records showed.
“The majority of our contributions have come from people that live within the district which speaks to the tremendous amount of support Council member Wills has in the community in his first eight months in office,” Tyquana Henderson, Wills’ campaign manager, said in a statement.
Jennings, the councilman for the district between 2002 and 2006 but was censured by the Council for a series of bizarre acts, is taking another shot at getting back into City Hall.
The former elected official has raised $5,857, including $2,150 in contributions from a former staffer, Priestly Taylor, and has spent $3,766 on this Council run, campaign finance records show.
A campaign finance spokeswoman said the former elected official has opted out of the matching funds program.
Another returning contender to this year’s race is Stephen Jones. Jones, who has not held any political office but used to serve as a member of School Board 29’s community council, lost to White in the 2009 Democratic primary.
So far he has raised $1,060 for his newest bid and spent $1,170, according to the Campaign Finance Board. Jones is the largest contributor to his own campaign with $250, campaign finance records show.
Clifton Stanley Diaz, a U.S. Air Force veteran who currently serves as the president of the Rochdale Village Civic Association, is one of the two new candidates in the race. Although he has not officially run for office, he attempted to get on the ballot for the 2005 Democratic primary but could not gather enough signatures.
Diaz said he does not have that problem now.
“This time people are signing my petitions like wildfire,” said the candidate, who added that he missed Friday’s deadline for campaign finance filing.
Community Board 12 member the Rev. David B. Kayode is the final candidate listed in the race. Kayode, a Nigerian immigrant, has worked as an outreach leader with the city Department of Homeless Services and currently works as a substance abuse adviser at a New York state-credentialed alcohol clinic in Brooklyn.
He has raised $2,975 and spent $3,200 on his campaign so far, the Campaign Finance Board said. Kayode’s largest contributor is Gbenga Famojuro of Far Rockaway, who has given $600 to the campaign, according to campaign finance records.
Kayode, Jones and Jennings could not be reached for comment as of press time Tuesday.
Reach reporter Ivan Pereira by e-mail at ipereira@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4546.
