The Queens GOP leadership made a bold move Saturday at their March Executive Committee meeting by endorsing City Councilmember Dan Halloran to run in the newly created 6th Congressional District. Party leaders strongly felt that with this unique opportunity Halloran was the best candidate to win this seat for the Republican Party, and Halloran graciously accepted the nomination with a rousing speech about the need for change in Washington.
This court-created district essentially has no incumbent but it was expected that Congressmember Gary Ackerman would run here. While Ackerman did not reside in the new district, it covered a large swath of his old 5th district. But with Ackerman’s surprising announcement last week that he would not seek reelection, and the prospect of a multi-candidate primary for the Democrat nomination, Republican leaders from throughout the new district quickly gathered to voice their unanimous endorsement of Halloran to be the official candidate of the Queens County Republican Party.
According to Queens GOP Chairman Phil Ragusa, “While we were disappointed that the courts eliminated Congressmember Bob Turner’s district, we take heart that Bob now is running for United States Senate. Meanwhile, we see Gary Ackerman’s retirement and the new congressional lines as presenting a great opportunity to elect another GOP congressmember here in Queens. The new NY-6 is nestled entirely within our county and covers large areas were middle class voters and homeowners live with a history of voting Republican. These are voters who have been most hurt by Obama’s tax and spend policies and disapprove of his fickleness with US and Israeli security. That is why we have all rallied behind City Councilmember Dan Halloran – a proven vote getter and a strong voice for taxpayers, small businesses and seniors. Dan has delivered for our communities at City Hall and he will be equally effective for us in Washington.”
Halloran was elected to the City Council in 2009 on the Republican, Conservative, Independence and Libertarian lines to represent the Queens neighborhoods of College Point, Auburndale-Flushing, Bayside, Whitestone, Bay Terrace, Douglaston and Little Neck.
He is a lifelong resident of northeast Queens growing up and attending local public and private schools and received an ROTC Scholarship to college. His family has served New York City for five generations. His great-grandfather was an NYPD police chief, his grandfather was an NYPD detective, and his two brothers are an FDNY firefighter and officer. His father served as a Deputy Director in the NYC Office of Management and Budget during the Koch Administration.
Halloran served in the NYPD and in three district attorney offices. Prior to his election, he was in private practice as an attorney with the law firm Palmieri & Castiglione, LLP where he was a litigator, fighting for patients’ rights and representing New York City police officers as an of counsel attorney for the PBA.
The Queens Examiner called Halloran an “independent thinker” who will “tackle issues on a case-by-case basis free of partisan politics” and has “become a highly respected member of the City Council, one who can deliver funds and services to the district by working to build positive relationships with his fellow City Councilmembers.” Halloran was praised by The Queens Gazette for his community roots and his “community-oriented” view of government.
The new NY-6 is now drawn to encompass Murray Hill, Bayside, Bayside Hills, Oakland Gardens, Fresh Meadows, Auburndale, East Flushing, Flushing Murray Hill, Queens Boro Hill, Briarwood, Forest Hills, Rego Park, Glendale, Middle Village, Maspeth and Ridgewood. Many of these neighborhoods have one and two family homes and have been represented by Republican elected officials like Senators Padavan and Maltese and approximately 40 percent of this newly carved district is currently represented by Councilmember Halloran.
