By Colin Campbell 10/31/12 8:07am

hurricane sandy

(photo: @bradlander)

Politicians Weather the Storm With Some Damage

Demonstrating that Mother Nature goes about her work without fear or favor, several prominent New York political figures were among the thousands who had their homes damaged by Hurricane Sandy this week.

In the middle of an interview with the Queens Times Ledger, for example, Far Rockaway Councilman James Sanders exclaimed, “A tree has fallen on my wife’s car.” Asked whether he wished he had left his flooded neighborhood, which was in the mandatory evacuation Zone A, Mr. Sanders expressed only one regret.

“I expected this and worse,” he said. “I regret not moving my wife’s car.” Read More

By Colin Campbell 10/30/12 12:05pm

frankenstorm

(Photo: The Atlantic's Chris Heller, @c_heller)

Congressman Bob Turner’s House Burned Down in Sandy’s Fury

Breezy Point, on the tip of the Rockaway Peninsula, was among the most devastated neighborhoods in New York City in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. Indeed, floods and fires left the area reminiscent of a war zone.

The fires also claimed the homes of Congressman Bob Turner and State Conservative Party Chairman Mike Long, Crain’s Insider reported. Fortunately, Mr. Turner’s office told the publication that the congressman and his wife made it out safely. Mr. Long is safe-and-sound too. Read More

By Colin Campbell 4/03/12 10:00am

friendly waters

Congressman Grimm (Photo: Facebook)

Staten Island Conservatives Back Michael Grimm This Time

The Staten Island Conservative Party’s executive committee endorsed Democratic incumbent Rep. Michael McMahon in 2010, but with a new chairman and a new Republican incumbent, that’s not happening this time around.

Later this morning, Mr. Grimm will receive the endorsement of both the Brooklyn and Staten Island Conservative Parties, ensuring him a third ballot line along with the Independence Party. In 2010, the Brooklyn Conservatives were able to overrule their Staten Island counterparts’ attempt — spearheaded by Staten Island Borough President James Molinaro — to give their ballot line to the Democrat. Read More

By Hunter Walker 3/19/12 6:50pm

Latecomers

Bob Turner at his press conference outside the New York Conservative Party convention. (Photo: Hunter Walker)

Bob Turner: ‘I Believe We Will Prevail At The End of The Day’

Congressman Bob Turner’s surprise Senate campaign started too late for him to earn a spot on the Conservative Party ticket, but he still stopped by the convention where Wendy Long received the nomination today.

“I’m here today to pay my respects to the Conservative Party,” Mr. Turner said in a press conference held after his visit at the convention. “I would like very much to be on their nominating ballot, there’s a process in place and certain rules and my late entry in that has made this extraordinarily problematic.” Read More

By Colin Campbell 2/07/12 8:47am

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George Maragos (Photo: Facebook)

Maragos Apologizes for Conservative Confusion

U.S. Senate candidate George Maragos raised some eyebrows the other day when he announced the endorsement of the “Conservative Party USA (NY)” on the same day that he, and other potential candidates, met with the far more influential New York State Conservative Party.

Asked about this last night on Inside City Hall, Mr. Maragos offered a round of apologies for the confusion.

“The Conservative Party USA endorsed me, it’s a small party. I apologize for the confusion that  may have caused, because that’s a different party [from] the New York party headed by Mike Long,” he said. “I called Mike Long personally to apologize in that regard.” Read More

By Kara Bloomgarden-Smoke 6/02/11 11:42am

same-sex marriage

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Conservatives Don’t Discuss Marriage Over Dinner

“We have lost our confidence, or, as younger people would say, ‘mojo,’” Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn told a not-so-young crowd at the New York Conservative Party’s 49th Annual Dinner at the Sheraton last night.

Mr. Coburn was speaking generally of the country’s malaise, not about the state of the state Conservative Party, which seems to have regained some mojo in recent months.

The dinner—proudly titled “Recovering Row C”–celebrated the party’s move back to the third ballot line, and came as its chairman, Mike Long, has inserted the party into the debate over same-sex marriage, by pledging to deny an endorsement to any legislator who supports the measure. Read More

By Azi Paybarah 5/17/11 8:10pm

same-sex marriage

Democratic Gubernatorial Candidate Andrew Cuomo Gathers With Supporters On Election Night

Can Cuomo Marry Republicans and Gays?

On May 10, Governor Andrew Cuomo launched his public push for same-sex marriage with a speech inside the glass-encased Gordon Student Center at the Onondaga Community College in Syracuse. Invited guests sat in folding chairs as Mr. Cuomo leisurely clicked through a slide show accompanying his speech. After 20 minutes, he sounded impatient. “Other states Read More