There are no permanent friends in politics, just current allies, as the saying goes, and Eva Moskowitz is living proof.

Moskowitz, 46,  held one of the City Council’s most coveted slots from 2002-2005, chairperson of the Education Committee, and used the platform to criticize the United Federation of Teachers and the Dept. of Education, often angering her fellow colleagues.

She has always supported Mayor Bloomberg’s push to expand charter schools in the city, but she and the mayor have had their differences, too.

When Moskowitz blasted the mayor seven years ago because she thought he was taking a softer line with the UFT, he said she was going “back to grandstanding on education.”

She regularly criticizes the bureaucracy that former schools chancellor Joel Klein ran until recently, but he had always been extremely supportive of her Success Charter Network, which runs seven charter schools and hopes to open another next year on the Upper West Side.

Similarly, in local politics, Moskowitz, a former teacher who represented Manhattan’s East Side on the Council, has made and lost many friends. She used to work for Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney, but Maloney backed Scott Stringer in 2005, when he ran and beat Moskowitz in the Democratic primary for borough president.

Moskowitz backed Jonathan Bing’s democratic primary opponent in 2002, but when Bing faced a UFT-funded challenge last year, Moskowitz came to his aide and helped him win re-election. Bing said the pair patched up their differences long ago, and have worked well together in recent years.

Not so for Bing’s colleague, Upper West Side Assemblyman Daniel O’Donnell. He recalls holding a fundraiser for her about 11 years ago when Moskowitz first ran for Council, but he said he will not repeat the favor if Moskowitz ever runs for mayor, which she has discussed in the past. O’Donnell is trying to block Moskowitz’s Upper West Side school from opening and said he does not see charters as the answer to education’s problems.

Moskowitz says people assume she has a thick skin, but it’s not easy being in the middle of fights. “It’s actually quite unnerving to be the subject of attacks,” she said. “It’s not that I enjoy it… I’m willing to have them call me names if I can deliver for kids and families.”

Eric Schneiderman, the Upper West Sider and state senator, won the attorney general race last night, a bright spot in Upper West Side politics.

Schneiderman, who won a bruising five-way primary and tough general election, handily beat Republican Dan Donovan, the Staten Island district attorney. He will succeed Governor-elect Andrew Cuomo.

The latest tallies show that Schneiderman won with 55 percent of the vote, garnering more than 2.1 million votes to Donovan’s 1.7 million.

Here’s NBC New York‘s clip of Schneiderman’s victory speech:

With the amount of dissatisfaction and disappointment that many have expressed toward New York State government, it’s clear we need a governor who has a strong vision for the office and who can take control of a Legislature that has caused embarrassment on a national level. The choice for voters is between Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, and the Republication businessman from Buffalo, Carl Paladino. We wholeheartedly endorse Cuomo for governor.

Paladino has little to offer and has run a campaign filled with bigotry and bluster. While we recognize the strain of populism that has appealed to those disgruntled with government and the way politicians have been behaving, we do not want our state governed by anyone who has so little respect for his fellow citizens.
But this is not simply a Cuomo-by-default decision. As attorney general, Cuomo has a strong record as the state’s chief lawyer, investigating the pay-to-play scandal that led former Comptroller Alan Hevesi to plead guilty.
His blueprint for ethics reform includes a section that would legislate that lawmakers would have to disclose their earnings from outside jobs, something we think should also happen. While we are wary of family “dynasties” in all levels of politics, we feel Andrew Cuomo has shown a clear path and ambition in politics separate from his father’s, while also learning from his time working with him.
We do, however, hope that Andrew Cuomo stops playing it safe when it comes to his stated principles, coming out strong in favor of marriage equality (something that nearly all New York City politicians agree it is time for) and other progressive legislation. Getting any of his reforms passed with an obstinate Legislature will not be easy. But we feel Cuomo can make good on his promises to restore trust and create transparency in government.

Attorney General: Eric Schneiderman

The next New York attorney general has big shoes to fill. Eliot Spitzer and Andrew Cuomo were both crusaders who were able to balance complex issues of national importance as well as move the reform ball forward. The next attorney general must have the experience to be able to tap dance his way through the minefield of Albany corruption as well as find new ways of protecting consumers. That’s why we endorse Eric Schneiderman, a state senator from the Upper West Side, as our next attorney general.
While our state government has increasingly started resembling a Saturday Night Live skit, Schneiderman has been one of the few bright stars at the state level. He’s a smart, effective, reform-minded legislator who has stood up to his party when required, as well as crafted important legislation that promotes equal justice under law, such as ending the draconian Rockefeller drug laws.
Cleaning up Albany has become something of the mantra of this election. But Schneiderman has actually done it by convening a bipartisan panel to expel fellow Democrat Hiram Monserrate after he was convicted of assault against his girlfriend. In addition, he has spent many years standing up against Republican senators that have blocked his progressive reform-minded legislation.
We are confident that his background and experience plus core philosophy of equal justice will ensure that the interests of all New Yorkers are heard. He has a broad agenda that protects consumers, prevents the pollution of the environment and fights discrimination.
Mr. Schneiderman’s opponent, Staten Island District Attorney Dan Donovan, has a record that he can be proud of. As the Staten Island DA, he has amassed a high conviction rate for dangerous felons; he has also served respectably under Manhattan DA Robert Morgenthau. Donovan has a competent, nuts-and-bolts plan for the attorney general position. What he doesn’t have is the sweeping vision needed to implement the changes as well as the reform-minded vision of Eric Schneiderman.

Comptroller: Harry Wilson

Officially, the state comptroller is responsible for the nearly $130 billion pension fund, auditing agencies and releasing economic reports. But former State Comptroller Alan Hevesi’s recent guilty plea in a pay-to-play scandal put a spotlight on the sleepy, unglamorous office. Now, New Yorkers need a state comptroller that is pragmatic, vigorous and innovative. We endorse Republican Harry Wilson for state comptroller.
The current comptroller, Democrat Tom DiNapoli, has implemented necessary reforms and protected the pension fund since he was appointed to the seat in 2007.
But Wilson, the Republican candidate, is a Harvard-educated investor with an extensive and unique background in the public and private sectors.
His resume includes Goldman Sachs, Blackstone Capital and, most, recently Silver Point Capital. He was the only Republican on President Barack Obama’s auto-industry task force, where he led the successful restructuring of General Motors.
Wilson has the investment and managerial background needed to make the comptroller’s job integral to fixing New York’s economy. He is a moderate Republican who has a proven record of bipartisanship and pragmatism. Much like his work saving General Motors, we believe Wilson would work well with unions, rather than conveniently blaming them for all of the state’s fiscal problems. He believes in a low-tax burden for business rather than spending tax dollars on corporate welfare.
After Hevesi’s resignation, the State Legislature tapped DiNapoli, an Assembly member from Long Island, to become the new comptroller. While DiNapoli had no prior investment experience, he has the vision to continue being an able comptroller. He also instituted important ethics reforms in the office, from banning pay-to-play practices and placement agents from the investment fund.
But Wilson has the vision, skills and temperament to be an excellent comptroller. Though he is a Republican, this is one of the few races where Upper West Side voters can cast a ballot for the GOP without voting for a conservative ideologue.

State Legislature

The Upper West Side has quality, progressive legislators in Congress and in Albany. The Republican alternative in these races are either nonexistent or not a credible choice. We endorse State senators Bill Perkins, Tom Duane and Assembly members Linda Rosenthal, Daniel O’Donnell for re-election. In the open State Senate seat that covers parts of the Upper West Side, all of Northern Manhattan and parts of the Bronx, we endorse Adriano Espaillat.
In the House, Jerrold Nadler and Charles Rangel deserve re-election to their seats.

Ballot Measures:

Earlier this year, Mayor Michael Bloomberg called a commission to study and recommend changes to the city charter. This Nov. 2, voters in New York City must approve the changes at the ballot.
The questions are printed on the back of the ballot, on the other side of the candidate list. If approved, the changes would bring back two-term limits for city officials and make running for office easier. Voters should vote “yes” on these two questions.
Upper West Siders should vote “yes” on the question that would limit the next mayor, public advocate, comptroller, borough presidents and Council members to two, consecutive four-year terms. Voters established these limits through two ballot initiatives in the 1990s. But when Bloomberg wanted to run for a third term last year, the Council passed a law that overturned the two referendums.
Bringing the term limits law back to two terms would respect the voters that chose two terms for local elected officials. Most importantly, the new law would also block the City Council from again changing the term limit law through legislation.
The second question contains seven parts that, in part, will help more candidates get on the ballot. Voters should say “yes” to the question, which would approve all seven changes to the charter. These changes would lower the onerous ballot laws that inhibit competitive elections and insurgent candidates running for office.

The changes include:
• Greater disclosure of campaign spending from independent groups.
• Cutting the number of petitions needed to get on the ballot in half for each elected office.
• Increasing the fine for violating the city’s Conflicts of Interest law to $25,000 from $10,000.
• Consolidating the number of “administrative tribunals,” where people charged with violating a law or regulation can contest the charge.
• Creating a commission of appointees from the mayor and City Council to review the necessity of Charter and Administrative codes that require agency reports.
• Adding government-operated transportation and waste-management facilities in the annual map of the city’s property used to site new city facilities.

Assembly Member Daniel O’Donnell has no Republican challenger for his Upper West Side seat for the Nov. 2 election. But he nonetheless opened campaign headquarters in his district to help fellow Democrats in competitive statewide races.

On one of the final Sundays before the election, O’Donnell held an open house at the 940 Amsterdam Ave. storefront to attract new activists to drive voter turnout in what is expected to be a tough year for his party.

About four dozen people listened to O’Donnell and Rep. Charles Rangel of Harlem stress the importance of the upcoming election before volunteers got back to work later in the day.

“If you are a person in this nation and you work for a living, you need to get Democrats elected,” O’Donnell said.

Rangel said he was confident that his party would hold on to both houses of Congress, although polling suggests Republicans are likely to take control of the House.

“If common sense had anything to do with it we would not even be threatened,” Rangel said.

Volunteers at the headquarters said they had recently spent much of their time on the phones and knocking on doors for attorney general candidate and hometown favorite Eric Schneiderman, an Upper West Side state senator, and Rep. John Hall, who represents the Congressional district in the Hudson Valley.

Schneiderman is competing with Republican Staten Island District Attorney Dan Donovan in a close race for the position now held by Andrew Cuomo, the heavy favorite to be governor. Hall, meanwhile, is in a dead heat with Republican ophthalmologist Nan Hayworth, whose personal wealth Democrats at the open house said could complicate things.

Cynthia Doty, an Upper West Side Democratic district leader and member of Three Parks Independent Democrats, said local activists who had “adopted” Hall would provide a valuable boost to his campaign.

“We helped him win four years ago,” she said. “He won a primary he wasn’t expected to win.”

Doty said Hall’s current race is “very tight” but that she thinks the candidate will prevail.

O’Donnell said Democrats also have their eyes on the state comptroller race, in which Democrat Tom DiNapoli faces Republican businessman Harry Wilson. Recent polls show DiNapoli in the lead, but Wilson has received major newspaper endorsements.

Daniel Cohen, a recently elected state committee member, said a strong turnout in the city could be the key to winning closely contested races.

“We need to ramp up turnout downstate to offset more conservative turnout in upstate New York,” he said.

Rangel is expected to comfortably win his reelection bid against Republican and former professional football player Michael Faulkner. However, Rangel must stand on trial before Congress Nov. 15, for allegations of House ethics violations.

During his speech, Rangel briefly referred to the controversy, thanking local Democrats for their help in “breaking up fears brought by the papers.”

Later, Rangel called the allegations “irrational” and said, “The people are saying, ‘I trust Rangel.’ That’s step one.”

Elected officials and advocates urged the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Department of Education (DOE) to start investigating the levels of toxic PCBs in hundreds of potentially affected city schools.

The results of a pilot study conducted this year with the federal agency and the city DOE found airborne PCBs that exceeded recommended levels at P.S. 199 on the Upper West Side, P.S. 178 in the Bronx and Brooklyn’s P.S. 309.

From 1950 to 1978, before a Congressional ban went into effect, caulk and lighting ballasts—a fixture that controls electrical flow—used to construct buildings and schools contained PCBs, which studies suggest can cause learning disabilities in children, cancer, and cardiovascular and immune system disease.

Rep. Jerrold Nadler, an Upper West Side Democrat, wants Judith Enck, regional administrator for the EPA, to immediately expand its oversight of PCB management in the city’s public schools.

“The problem is much more serious than we originally believed,” Nadler said at a rally at City Hall Oct. 7.

The EPA, in a statement, said the elevated PCB levels found in those schools “do not pose an immediate health risk in the short term.”

“Any needed repairs or renovations to address PCBs problems are conducted in ways that protect everyone who works in NYC school buildings,” siad Bonnie Bellow, an EPA spokesperson, in a statement.

The EPA expressed confidence in the study and said it has been communicating with federal and state officials about the feasibility of funding a broader approach.

The city estimates the price tag to be $1 billion. The EPA wouldn’t foot the entire bill. Already, the city has spent $3 million on remediation efforts. But Nadler said the city would “find the funds if we have to.”

West Side Assembly members Linda Rosenthal and Daniel O’Donnell signed a letter with 15 of their colleagues to Enck asking the federal agency to inspect roughly 700 schools that may have PCB-laden caulk and light fixtures. Rosenthal plans to reintroduce her 2008 legislation that would require citywide testing of schools.

“Are we content to let New York City schoolchildren in untested school buildings serve as the proverbial canaries for future generations?” she asked.

Miranda Massie, litigation and training director with New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, expressed concern that the agency’s study downplays the risks of PCBs, she wrote in a letter to the EPA.

“It is important to note that independent experts regard the EPA guidances as inadequately health-protective, in part because they are based exclusively on cancer risks” and overlook “the many other substantial, negative health impacts of PCBs,” she wrote in a letter to the EPA.

The EPA, in its statement, said, “We will continue to work closely with New York City on the pilot program, which we believe is providing valuable information about the extent of the PCB problem and measures we can take to address it.”

That continuation will begin this weekend with an additional round of testing at P.S. 199.

A week after Adriano Espaillat won his primary election for State Senate, he held a meeting with his former opponents to hear their ideas for the district.

Espaillat, an Assembly member from Washington Heights, held a breakfast meeting at Dyckman Express Restaurant Sept. 23 with candidates Mark Levine, Anna Lewis and Miosotis Muñoz.

Adriano Espaillat.

The group discussed their priorities and ideas for improving the diverse district. Represented for more than a decade by Eric Schneiderman, the Democratic nominee for attorney general, the State Senate seat covers parts of the Upper West Side, all of northern Manhattan and Riverdale in the Bronx.

“We had a very lively senatorial race,” said Espaillat, who took 51 percent of the vote in the Sept. 14 Democratic primary.

Lewis offered her endorsement of Espaillat, which prompted Levine to say that he considered it “universal” among Espaillat’s past rivals.

“One thing about the campaign is that everyone agreed on the main issues,” Levine said. “We all care about the district and the community.”

During the campaign, each candidate tried to highlight their background to separate themselves from the pack, as each ran as progressive Democrats. Levine, who came in second, touted the credit union he founded in the area to help small businesses; Anna Lewis, the only Upper West Side resident in the campaign, emphasized her background as a lawyer who helped draft state laws; and Munoz focused on special education and senior services.

“I know their strengths,” Espaillat said. “I hope to talk to them for not just ideas but real-life solutions to problems.”

Lewis suggested that Espaillat tackle the spate of empty storefronts cropping up where small businesses once operated in the Upper West Side. She also proposed increasing the “dismal” Medicaid reimbursement rates for independently-owned pharmacies and studying ways to keep commercial rents low.

Espaillat proposed creating a “one-stop center” for small businesses that will assist with licensing issues and provide an attorney to help with leases.

After his primary victory, Espaillat only has nominal opposition in November’s general election from Green Party candidate Ann Roos.

Epaillat said his priority in the Senate is to pass pro-tenant legislation that the chamber has bottled up for years, such as repealing vacancy decontrol—the point at which a newly vacant unit is taken out of the rent regulation system and converted to market rate housing

“The conditions are there for it to be taken seriously,” Espaillat said.

In this year’s primary election, Upper West Side voters gave a favorite son a promotion and rewarded legislative incumbents with another two-year term. Here are the results from contested Democratic primary races in the Upper West Side.

Attorney General:

Eric Schneiderman

Eric Schneiderman

Eric Schneiderman, an Upper West Sider and six-term state senator, narrowly won a five-way Democratic primary for attorney general.

Schneiderman beat his nearest competitor Kathleen Rice, a district attorney from Long Island, with 34 percent of the vote to 32 percent, according to the AP’s latest tally.

He totaled 202,894 and cleaned up in the five boroughs, especially in Manhattan. There, he took 57 percent of the borough’s vote.

In November, he faces a tough challenge from Republican Dan Donovan, Staten Island’s district attorney.

Congress:

Charles Rangel

Charles Rangel

The Harlem Lion handily beat back four challengers in the Democratic primary. Rangel, elected in 1970, ran for re-election as he faced 13 counts of ethics violation. But voters in a district that covers Harlem, northern Manhattan and a sizable part of the Upper West Side, gave Rangel another term in Congress with 51 percent of the vote. Adam Clayton Powell IV, an East Harlem Assembly member, was a distant second with 23 percent of the vote.

State Senate:

Bill Perkins

Bill Perkins

Bill Perkins, first elected in 2006, overwhelmingly beat his challenger, charter school advocate Basil Smikle, in this Harlem State Senate seat that extends into the Upper West Side. The voters sent Bill Perkins back to Albany with 76 percent of the vote. Gov. David Paterson, who used to hold the State Senate seat, campaigned with Smikle in a last-minute effort to boost his candidacy.

State Senate:

Adriano Espaillat

Adriano Espaillat

In the race to succeed Eric Schneiderman in the State Senate, Adriano Espaillat won the Democratic nomination against his rival Mark Levine with 51 percent of the vote. This is a diverse district that stretches from the Upper West Side to cover all of northern Manhattan and reaches into the Bronx. In the four-way race, Levine, from Washington Heights, took 39 percent of the vote. With Espaillat’s assured November victory, this is the first time the Upper West Side will be without a state senator from the neighborhood.

State Committee:

Daniel Cohen

Daniel Cohen

The state committee primary was a race for an obscure spot that only garnered the attention of die-hard Democrats. It’s an unpaid position within the Democratic Party. The committee member goes to the state convention to vote for statewide candidates to be placed on the ballot and craft the party platform.

Daniel Cohen, who advocated for an increased role in local community issues, beat Bob Ginsberg, who held the seat for 30 years until 2008, with 55 percent of the vote. Cohen will represent Democrats in the 69th Assembly district, which covers the Morningside Heights and Manhattanville area of the West Side.

West Siders went to the polls Sept. 14 to vote in primaries. But this year, the decades-old lever machine, in which voters flick a switch next to their desired candidate’s name and crank back a red lever, have been retired for a new model.

Voters received a sheet of paper with bubbles next to the candidates’ name. The voter then had to fill in the bubble completely, and then feed the paper into an optical scanner that records the vote.

Sounds simple, right?

Linda Rosdeitcher, an Upper West Side voter, was nervous the new ballot would fail to count her vote.

“It’s always scary to do something new and different,” she said outside of a polling place on West End Avenue between West 82nd and West 83rd Street. “I needed instructions.”

David Stone, who cast his ballot at a site on West 72nd Street between Broadway and West End Avenue, had an easy time voting.

“It was fast, going in and out,” Stone said.

But elsewhere in the Upper West Side, voters were not as lucky. There were reports throughout the city that optical scanning machines were broken or malfunctioning and polling places opening late. An Upper West Side poll worker that voted on her lunch break detailed a number of problems she witnessed, including paper ballots being jammed, optical machines not reading them correctly and voters incorrectly filling out ballots.

“There’s a good thing there’s a low-turn out,” she said. “There are difficulties with the machines,” she said.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg, during a press conference called the situation a “royal screw up” that was “unacceptable.”

Council Speaker Christine Quinn and Gale Brewer, the Upper West Side Council member who chairs the Government Operations Committee, released a joint statement criticizing the Board of Elections.

“The Board of Elections demonstrated a troubling inability to fully execute a new system that they have had months to prepare for,” the statement read. “The City Council will hold a hearing in the coming weeks to examine any problems that did arise today and what changes might be made to improve the process in the coming months”

Newsweek profiled one of Rep. Charlie Rangel’s Democratic primary challengers, Joyce Johnson, and mentioned the West Side Spirit‘s endorsements.

The news magazine chronicled Johnson’s campaign, documenting the challenges an insurgent candidate faces when going up against a Congressman that has much of the city’s institutional support.

One example of that kind of support, the article said, is the West Side Spirit‘s endorsement of Rangel.

Newsweek wrote:

As Johnson walks along the street she stops in front of a box of the West Side Spirit, a community newspaper, and squints at the front-page endorsement of Rangel, which is news to her. The endorsement is a testament to the powers of incumbency, which go beyond name recognition and fundraising advantages. The Spirit supports Rangel on the grounds that, despite having given up his chairmanship of the Ways and Means Committee, a congressman with Rangel’s tenure can pull more strings for his district. She shrugs it off and traipses down to the Whole Foods, where she wants to stand outside handing out her fliers, but is immediately chased away by the bellowing noise from jackhammers at a construction site across the street. “I’ll start my door-to-door,” she concludes.

Johnson is a former government aide and the equal employment director at Seagram’ s who won the New York Times‘ endorsement.

New York Attorney General: Eric Schneiderman

New York has recently had top-notch attorneys general in Eliot Spitzer and Andrew Cuomo. The next attorney general must be able to match their stature, their skill in taking on complex issues of national importance, and their ability to extract reform. The next attorney general must also be adept at addressing Albany corruption and protecting consumers.

Of the five candidates seeking to be the state’s top cop, we endorse Eric Schneiderman, a state Senator from the Upper West Side.

As Albany disappointed New Yorkers for decades, Schneiderman has been a prime example of a smart, effective, reform-minded legislator. He has crafted legislation that promotes equal justice under the law and ended discriminatory practices. He led the fight to end the harsh Rockefeller Drug Laws, which disproportionately targeted blacks and Latinos. He introduced the Fraud, Enforcement and Recovery Act, which closed loopholes in the state’s False Claim Act.

Although Gov. David Paterson vetoed Schneiderman’s ethics reform bill for being too weak, the legislation would have brought much-needed change to Albany. The fact that his legislation was introduced and passed by a nearly unanimous vote is a major accomplishment.

Each candidate is talking about cleaning up Albany. But Schneiderman actually did it when given the opportunity. Against the wishes of his chamber’s leadership, Schneiderman convened a bipartisan panel to expel his colleague and fellow Democrat Hiram Monserrate after he was convicted of misdemeanor assault against his girlfriend. These accomplishments occurred after the Democrats took the Senate majority in 2009. He has spent the rest of his 12 years in the State Senate fighting Republican senators that blocked his progressive reform-minded legislation.

We are concerned that Schneiderman lacks an investigatory background, but we are confident he will hire an accomplished staff that can follow his vision for the attorney general’s office, which separates him from his competitors. Schneiderman’s core philosophy of equal justice will ensure that the interests of all New Yorkers are heard. He has a broad agenda that protects consumers, prevents the pollution of the environment and fights discrimination.

The other candidates in the race are well-qualified and have strong ideas for the office. Sean Coffey has an exemplary legal background as a federal prosecutor and lead lawyer in the WorldCom fraud case, in which he won more than $6 billion for burned investors. Coffey fashions himself as an outsider, but can speak on the issues passionately and eloquently with the knowledge of a seasoned elected official. If spending time in Albany is a disqualifier for voters, Coffey is a welcome alternative.

Eric Dinallo, former deputy to Spitzer in the attorney general’s office, has an accomplished government background. He also was head of the state’s Insurance Department. He knows the job and how to wield it for powerful results. But we feel Dinallo’s vision—that the attorney general should focus on kitchen table issues—is too limited.

We extend that feeling to Richard Brodsky, an Assembly member representing parts of Westchester. As attorney general, he said he would focus on unfair or hidden fees New Yorkers pay for energy. But his temperament makes him ill-suited for the attorney general’s office, evidenced by his stance on the Islamic cultural center in downtown Manhattan. He unnecessarily waded into the debate and, despite saying he would defend the center as attorney general, proposed a “compromise” in which the center moves for the sake of appeasing its detractors.

Kathleen Rice, the district attorney for Nassau County, Long Island, has been a superb local prosecutor. She has tackled a drunk driving scourge, sexual predators and fought Medicaid fraud. But many of these—save for Medicaid fraud—are quality-of-life issues. She is under-qualified to be the state’s highest law enforcement official.

We support Eric Schneiderman for attorney general in the Sept. 14. Democratic primary.

State Senate—30th District: Bill Perkins

Although many New Yorkers may be angry about political deadlock in Albany and calling for reform, that doesn’t mean that all incumbents need to be ousted in this election cycle. For example, Bill Perkins has been a positive force for reform in his district, which covers Harlem, Washington Heights and part of the Upper West Side. While Perkins has criticized the way charter schools operate within existing public schools—and suffered some backlash for questioning this fairly new practice—it doesn’t mean he hasn’t been a strong force in the Legislature, addressing constituent concerns and, in fact, supporting a bill that would increase the number of charter schools.

His challenger, Basil Smikle, is an impressive candidate who has worked as a top aide for Hillary Clinton and the Democratic National Convention. Smikle has his own ideas for improving affordable housing and job creation in the district and will undoubtedly continue to be an imaginative and expressive politician who we hope to see continue his drive to better the city for everyday New Yorkers.

We are certain Perkins, however, will continue his progressive work concerning affordable housing issues and public education and therefore endorse him for re-election.

State Senate—31st District: Mark Levine

When State Senator Eric Schneiderman announced his candidacy for attorney general this year, it meant that his seat in the 31st District was wide open. There are four strong Democratic candidates in the primary, and the district—which covers parts of the Upper West Side, Hamilton Heights, Washington Heights, Inwood and Riverdale—calls for someone prepared to tackle the constituent concerns of a wide swath of New Yorkers in an area undergoing profound changes—especially in regards to housing and job creation. For this reason, we support Mark Levine in the Democratic primary.

Levine, a Washington Heights resident, represents the possibility of new leadership for the district and has a broad background of community building and activism. He has the fresh ideas and independent background that voters want when it comes to reform in Albany. He plans to support campaign finance reform as well as assist constituents in navigating state government hurdles in dealing with health, housing and transit issues.

Levine began his career as a bilingual science teacher and later served as executive director of Teach For America-New York. He understands, firsthand, the issues facing our public school system. Levine went on to found Upper Manhattan’s first and only community development credit union, Neighborhood Trust, which has helped many lower-income residents. In 2007, Levine won a Democratic district leader position, campaigned for Barack Obama’s presidential primary and created the Barack Obama Democratic club uptown.

Levine’s strongest competitor in the primary is Assemblyman Adriano Espaillat, also from Washington Heights, who has served 14 years in the state legislature and possesses a stellar background when it comes to constituent concerns, and is a strong candidate.

On immigration reform, tenants rights, urban education and economic development, Espaillat has always been on the right side of progressive legislation and would most likely continue to be a strong advocate for the district’s constituents. Espaillat has strong support from other incumbent politicians, including Senator Schneiderman, but for voters looking for a new perspective at the state level, it’s difficult to make the argument for Espaillat.

A former Democratic district leader and the only Upper West Side resident in the race, Anna Lewis is an attorney with 25 years of experience; she knows the law. Lewis has a legacy of drafting legislation supporting constituent concerns, and she wants to continue her efforts in that direction, especially concerning health care and consumer rights. We also think her idea for housing reform—in particular to start a new housing initiative modeled after the Mitchell-Lama program—is the best we have heard and hope that she continues to advocate for such a program in the future and that others support similar ideas. The fact that there are so few elected women running for state political positions should change, and we hope that Lewis will run for a position in the future.

The other woman in the race, Miosotis Muñoz, has very heartfelt ambitions for the district, and her background in social work and grassroots organizing for various community causes should be applauded. Her compassion, leadership and enthusiasm for neighborhood concerns, however, seem better suited for on-the-ground community efforts, rather than the bureaucracy of state politics.

We endorse Mark Levine for the State Senate in the 31st District for his promise of reform, new ideas and a background that seems exceptionally suited to this vibrant and transforming district.

15th Congressional District: Charlie Rangel

Representative Charles B. Rangel is seeking his 21st term, and we endorse him in that effort. Despite the recent controversy surrounding his office due to the charges of ethics violations, Rangel still deserves the support, and votes, of his constituents after years of dedicated political service.

Although Rangel has relinquished the chairmanship of the House Ways and Means Committee, which he had waited since 1981 to take over and finally did in 2006, he still holds quite a bit of power after 40 years in Congress and letting that pass away at this point would be a mistake for New Yorkers. Although many have called for his retirement, Rangel continues to work with indefatigable strength and dedication for his constituents and the nation as a whole.

Even though Rangel will most likely win re-election to the House, we will still need a new generation of qualified and eager candidates to fill his estimable shoes. One of the more fascinating aspects this year was meeting the group that had the pluck to run against the incumbent. For those seeking a change, they will find an excellent candidate in Vince Morgan. The community banker is new to political campaigning, but we found that he had a winning personality and many ideas for where the district could position itself in the 21st-century. In particular, his involvement as the chairman of the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone and the chair of the 125th Street Business Improvement District will give him a valuable perspective as he continues his political career in the district.

Adam Clayton Powell IV may have many bona fides, most obviously sharing a name with the man who preceded Rangel as the Congressman for the district and serving as a New York City councilmember and in the State Assembly. But Powell’s record in the Assembly has been spotty, his attendance poor. Overall, we think if there is indeed going to be change in the district, we should be looking to the future, not the past.

The other two candidates, Joyce Johnson and Jonathan Tasini, should both be commended for entering the race. Johnson has dedicated many years to public service in various capacities, as well as being a pioneer for women of color in the corporate sector. We hope that she does continue in her unremitting efforts to create a world that supports the efforts of women and minorities to achieve their dreams on an equal playing field. Tasini’s career as a gadfly when it comes to labor and economic issues is needed in politics. Lending his ideas and energy to the race is much appreciated.

We look forward to the next primary for the district, which will undoubtedly have an even stronger and diverse pool of candidates, but in the meantime, we endorse Charlie Rangel for Congress.