By Colin Campbell 2/05 1:06pm

Hotel Personnel

(Photo: Facebook)

HTC Rolls Out Three City Council Endorsements

It’s a good day for former Assemblyman Rory Lancman.

Mr. Lancman, a candidate for outgoing Councilman Jim Gennaro’s seat, was first welcomed to the news that his top opponent, Martha Taylor, had dropped out of the race. Giving him a further boost, this afternoon, Mr. Lancman scored the endorsement of the Hotel Trades Council, a small but politically powerful union that successfully worked on behalf of Mr. Lancman’s competitor in a congressional campaign last year. Read More

By Colin Campbell 7/10/12 2:24pm

wfp for you and me

Jesus Gonzalez (Photo: Facebook)

Working Families Party Begins to Weigh in on City Council Races

Forget 2012′s elections, the Working Families Party is already taking a look at the 2013 City Council campaigns beginning to heat up. Accordingly, the party announced their first endorsements of council candidates this afternoon, backing Jesus Gonzalez and Costa Constantinides. And while neither endorsement is especially shocking, it’s certainly nice for the respective candidates to have the labor powerhouse’s support for their respective Democratic primaries.

Mr. Gonzalez previously received the Working Families Party’s backing when he ran in a high-profile State Assembly special election last year. In that election, he ran only on the WFP line against the Democratic candidate, Councilman Erik Dilan’s then-Chief of Staff Rafael Espinal. Mr. Gonzalez ultimately lost that election and subsequently decided to seek the seat belonging to Mr. Dilan, who is term limited, rather than seek a rematch with Mr. Espinal. Read More

By Colin Campbell 1/27/12 10:21am

queens quest

Daniel Peterson (Photo: Facebook)

Candidates Eye Astoria Council Seat

Two candidates, one Democrat and one Republican, each have opened committees and are looking at possibly running for term-limited Queens Councilman Peter Vallone’s seat in 2013. Democratic District Leader Costa Constantinides and former New York Young Republican Club President Daniel Peterson are both actively considering campaigns while declining to officially declare their intentions to run.

In a recent interview, Mr. Peterson, who also sits on the Queens Republican Executive committee, confirmed that he’s exploring a bid for the Council seat but stated he hasn’t made a definite decision yet. Read More