Elections

Elections 2022: Jessica Altagracia Woolford Runs on Working Families Party Ticket in General Election

By SÍLE MOLONEY
  The following story was first published on June 26, 2022, by Norwood News ahead of the June 2022 Democratic Primary for Assembly District 81, when Jessica Altagracia Woolford ran, ultimately unsuccessfully, in that primary race against incumbent assemblyman, Jeffrey Dinowitz (A.D. 81). Altagracia Woolford is currently running for office in the upcoming general election on Nov. 8 on the Working Families Party ticket, once again, in Assembly District 81.    Growing up in Kingsbridge, Jessica Altagracia Woolford is a community organizer who previously worked for the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs, U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand’s office, and campaigned for


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Elections 2022: John Zaccaro Jr. on Quality of Life, Housing & Education

By JOSÉ A. GIRALT
  In the upcoming general election on Nov. 8, voters of Assembly District 80 will decide who best represents their interests in Albany. Running for the seat on behalf of the Democratic Party is a former A.D. 80 male district leader, John Zaccaro Jr., who served in the latter role from 2018 to 2020. If elected to the assembly, he will replace incumbent assembly member, Nathalia Fernandez, who is running as the Democratic nominee in the State Senate District 34 race.   Zaccaro Jr. was selected on Sept. 7 by a Bronx Democratic Party committee as the Democratic nominee for


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Community Op-Ed: Polls are Now Open! Vote Today in this Critical Election 

By ERIC ADAMS
Tuesday, Nov. 8, is Election Day in New York City – your last chance to join millions of New Yorkers in making your voices heard and casting your ballots in these critical elections. The polls will be open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. If you can’t vote on Tuesday, you can also vote early in person! Early voting polls will be open through Sunday, Nov. 6. Your poll site may have changed, so it’s important to check your poll site location and its hours [of opening] before you vote at nycvotes.org.   This year, voting is more important than


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UPDATE City Council Approves Redrawn Maps dated Oct. 6 Submitted by NYC Districting Commission

By SÍLE MOLONEY
New York City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams sent a letter on behalf of the council to New York City Districting Commission chair, Dennis Walcott, on Thursday, Oct. 27, notifying the commission of the council’s acceptance of the proposed district maps [dated Oct. 6] without objection. The proposed maps will now go to the city clerk for certification.   Adams wrote in the letter, in part, “The Council accepts the Plan without objection, noting that it was passed by 13 members of the Commission after extensive deliberation over legal considerations including the Voting Rights Act of 1965, population deviation limitations and


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UPDATE Benjamin Franklin Reform Dems Will Consider Endorsing 2023 District 11 City Council Primary Candidates

By SÍLE MOLONEY
The Benjamin Franklin Reform Democratic Club (BFRDC) has announced that it will “discuss and decide whether to endorse a candidate for the 2023 11th district City Council [Democratic] primary election.”   A representative for the Kingsbridge-based club said that if the club decides to go ahead with this proposal, club members will vote on any such endorsement for the council position, which is currently held by incumbent City Councilman Eric Dinowitz.   As reported, the club had been criticized by some during the 2020/2021 election cycle for the manner in which the club endorsed Dinowitz, then a candidate for the


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Torres’ Highest Priority for Small Business: Access to Capital

By JULIAN ROBERTS-GRMELA
Ahead of Election Day, Nov. 8, and in a bid perhaps to win over his future constituents in New York’s redrawn 15th Congressional District, Rep. Ritchie Torres has said one of his highest priorities is to provide small businesses with access to capital. The Democratic congressman was speaking at a virtual forum held on Thursday, Oct. 13, hosted by Biz2Credit, an NYC-based lending company for small businesses. Torres appeared as a guest alongside Long Island Republican, Rep. Andrew Garbarino.   “One of my strongest priorities is to ensure that we are doing everything we can in Congress to support the


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UPDATE Elections 2022: Republican Candidate, Phyllis Nastasio, on Education, Crime and NYCHA Housing

By SÍLE MOLONEY
Editor’s Note: An earlier version of this online story and some copies of the print edition incorrectly referenced Phyllis Nastasio as a Democratic candidate in the upcoming election for A.D. 80. In fact, Nastasio is running on the Republican/Conservative ticket in this race. We apologize for this error. Our profile on Democratic nominee, John Zaccaro Jr., for A.D. 80 can be read here.    Raised on Arthur Avenue, Pelham Parkway resident, Phyllis “Tiz” Nastasio is running on the Republican/Conservative ticket in the November general election in A.D. 80 to succeed incumbent, Democratic Assemblywoman Nathalia Fernandez. She faces John Zaccaro who


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UPDATE Communities Clash over Orchard Beach Shelter, Rivera Asks Mayor to Reconsider Randall’s Island Site

By DAVID GREENE
The following is an updated and expanded version of the story that appears in our latest print edition.   A contentious battle pitting neighbor against neighbor has apparently been averted, as the temporary shelter that was being built to house 1,000 male asylum seekers at Orchard Beach parking lot has been halted. As reported, Mayor Eric Adams did an about-face on Monday, Oct. 3 and is now moving the controversial shelter to Randall’s Island.   Workers had begun erecting several massive tents on Monday, Sept. 26, but three demonstrations were since organized opposing the site by local Republican Party candidates, Tina


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UPDATE NYC Districting Commission Approved Latest Redrawn City Council Maps on Oct. 6

By SÍLE MOLONEY
NYC Districting Commission, the entity tasked with redrawing the 51 New York City Council maps following the 2020 census results, voted 13-1 to approve and submit to the City Council the latest newly redrawn maps, during a public meeting held on Thursday, Oct. 6.   These maps were revised from both the preliminary plan published by the Commission in July and a proposed revised plan submitted in September that was not approved by the Commission during a meeting on Sept. 22. The maps represent a response to over 12,500 submissions offered by New Yorkers in person or via Zoom during


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