By Colin Campbell 8/02/12 1:17pm

brooklyn

(Photo: Getty)

Candidates Jostle Over Who Opposes Cuomo’s Special Education Veto More

On Tuesday, Governor Andrew Cuomo vetoed legislation that would have provided public funding for special education students to attend private schools, a move he and Mayor Michael Bloomberg said was fiscally prudent yet also one that was condemned by politicians representing observant Jewish constituencies.

The bill’s chief sponsor in the State Assembly, Helene Weinstein, vowed to “continue the fight” in a statement, aiming to try and get enough votes in her chamber to override Mr. Cuomo’s veto. However, being the chief proponent of the bill is apparently not enough to avoid being attacked for not doing enough on the issue, and Ms. Weinstein’s Republican opponent Joseph Hayon sharply criticized her in a statement last night. Read More

By Colin Campbell 5/31/12 8:22am

brooklyn

New York GOP Chair Ed Cox and Joseph Hayon (Photo: Facebook)

Cymbrowitz’s 2010 Challenger to Run Against Weinstein This Time Around

Joseph Hayon, a Republican activist in southeastern Brooklyn’s Jewish community who did surprisingly well against Assemblyman Steve Cymbrowitz in 2010, will forgo a rematch and instead run against Assemblywoman Helene Weinstein. Indeed, Mr. Hayon, who also doubles as the head of the Brooklyn Tea Party club, told us that he was “99%” likely to run.

Mr. Hayon is known in Brooklyn political circles as a particularly passionate opponent of the gay marriage legislation signed last year, and he hinted that Mr. Cymbrowitz’s vote against the bill — and Ms. Weinstein’s support of it — factored into his decision-making, in addition to redistricting changing the shape of the map. Read More

By Colin Campbell 1/24/12 12:21pm

no choice for school choice

David Storobin (Photo: Facebook)

David Storobin’s Independent Line Bid Likely to Fail [Updated]

Special election candidate David Storobin, who already has the Republican and Conservative lines in his campaign to replace former State Senator Carl Kruger, will likely be unsuccessful in his efforts to be on a third “School Choice Party” line, a Democratic source told Politicker.

The Democrat explained that 2,387 valid signatures were needed for an independent ballot line in this State Senate district — an awkward number as it’s calculated from the number of votes the district cast in the last gubernatorial election. Apparently Mr. Storobin fell several hundred signatures short of this goal.

Mr. Storobin’s bid to be on the School Choice line will still be successful if his signatures remain unchallenged, but the Democratic source suggested strongly that they will be challenged, additionally arguing that the lack of signatures shows a lack of organization for the aspiring State Senator. Read More