The political landscape in northeast Queens is shifting due to the newly redrawn district maps.
State Senator Toby Ann Stavisky, who became the first Queens woman elected to the upper chamber representing Senate District 16 in 1999, announced Monday that she will seek re-election, this time to represent Senate District 11, a seat currently held by state Senator John Liu, who is also on the move.
“I have had the privilege of representing many neighborhoods throughout my tenure in the state Senate. From Bayside to Flushing, Whitestone to Bay Terrace, I’ve always made it my priority to serve my constituents to the best of my ability,” Stavisky said. “After reviewing the courts’ newly drawn maps, I am happy to announce I am running for Senate District 11, a district with which I have a great deal of history.”
The Forest Hills resident completed graduate school at Queens College in Flushing and went on to become the first woman to chair the powerful Senate Committee on Higher Education. State election law dictates that during a redistricting year, candidates must live in the county, not the district they hope to represent.
“It is the community I raised my family in, a community I’ve represented in the past and a community I consider to be home. I look forward to hitting the campaign trail.”
Liu announced Sunday that he would seek re-election running in Stavisky’s redrawn District 16. He has lived in Flushing for nearly three decades and represented the northeast Queens community in the City Council.
Liu immigrated from Taiwan at the age of 5 and went on to be known as a trailblazer, becoming the first Asian American to win legislative office in New York and then the first to win citywide office — milestones for Asian Americans in New York and across the nation.
“It has been an honor and privilege to represent District 11 including the communities of College Point, Whitestone, Bay Terrace, Douglaston, Little Neck, Glen Oaks, Bellerose, Queens Village, Floral Park, Hollis and Jamaica for the past four years,” Liu said. “Now that the courts have redrawn state senate districts such that my house of 29 years is located in District 16, I’ve decided to District 16 and look forward to representing and fighting for my constituents in Bayside, Flushing, Fresh Meadows and Oakland Gardens. Let’s do this.”
