(Photo: Facebook)

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.

"I can't wait to reshape our City's priorities towards lifting up working New Yorkers, and no one has consistently done just that like the men and women of the Hotel Trades Council -- I'm grateful for their support," Mr. Lancman said in a statement.

Additionally, HTC announced two other endorsements this afternoon: Donovan Richards and Costa Constantinides.

Mr. Richards, formerly Councilman James Sanders' chief of staff, is campaigning in the February 19th special election for his boss' southeastern Queens district, left vacant when Mr. Sanders joined the New York State Senate. Mr. Constantinides is a candidate vying to replace term-limited Astoria Councilman Peter Vallone.

Mr. Lancman still faces Isaac Sasson, a lottery winner and millionaire, in his Democratic primary, currently scheduled for September later this year.

Jesus Gonzalez (Photo: Facebook)

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.

The WFP's other endorsement went for Mr. Constantinides, currently running for term-limited Councilman Peter Vallone's seat in Astoria. Although the party and the Queens County Democratic organization have often found themselves on opposing sides in recent years, the endorsement could represent a point of agreement between the two, as Congressman Joe Crowley, the head of the county Democrats, appeared at a fundraiser for Mr. Constantinides months ago.

“We couldn’t be more pleased with these two candidates. New Yorkers deserve leaders like Costa and Jesus who will fight for the values working families, not billionaires, lobbyists and corporations,”  Bill Lipton, the WFP's Deputy Director said in a statement. “They’ll be great additions to the City Council.”

Interestingly, the outgoing incumbents in both council races could very well come down opposing the Working Families picks. Mr. Dilan is all but certain to back another candidate, possibly his wife Janitza, while Mr. Vallone has said positive things about Tony Meloni's campaign for his seat, declaring him "a very formidable candidate."

With a huge number of term-limited council members leaving open seats behind them, control of the Council's powerful speakership hangs in the balance, creating a possible opportunity for the WFP to secure the position for a labor ally if they can win enough of these races. Which is likely why they're weighing in so early.

Daniel Peterson (Photo: Facebook)

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.

The Republican indicated that his largest concern is the ideological direction of New York City and the lack of conservative voices to balance the overwhelmingly Democratic City Council.  "New York City leans too much one way politically, and there needs to be a little more moderation to balance it out," he said. "I don't think 5 -- now 4 -- [Republican] Council Members is enough to bring that balance."

Although every elected official in northwestern Queens is Democratic, Mr. Peterson says he would have a decent shot at victory. "It is going to be an uphill fight, but it is more of a moderate Democratic district. It voted for Bloomberg and it supported Giuliani."

If Mr. Peterson does enter the race, he could easily be running against a Democrat who's been exploring a run for a bit of time already, and who's raised over $20,000 so far: Mr. Constantinides.

"I've been working for the Council for five and a half years. I know how to get things done for this community," Mr.  Constantinides said in a recent interview with Roberto Perez when asked to give his pitch to voters for a hypothetical candidacy. "I understand the needs of the neighborhood because I'm out there every single night, every single day, talking to the people of this district, finding out the things that they need. I think I can deliver those things based on my experience."