9 minute read

ENDORSEMENTS

Next Article
FIRST READ

FIRST READ

Who’s a kingmaker and who’s a dud?

The August primary endorse-o-meter

Advertisement

By Sahalie Donaldson and Asar John

POLITICAL ENDORSEMENTS are a way for elected officials, organizations and labor groups to curry favor and signal that a candidate has their backing, which voters can then use to judge that person’s ideology. It can be a useful tool to determine where a candidate falls.

Tuesday’s primary was no exception to this time-honored tradition. Prominent names like New York City Mayor Eric Adams, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and influential groups like the Working Families Party pitched their support behind a slate of candidates to mixed success. Endorsements are aimed at bolstering a candidate’s campaign – sometimes succeeding depending on the sway of whoever is granting the nod. And how much sway did endorsements have in the Aug. 23 primary?

Here’s a rundown of some of the most – and least – successful endorsers of the August primary.

“Times’ way or the highway”

THE NEW YORK TIMES

In recent years, the Times editorial board’s endorsements have become increasingly influential in competitive New York City elections. Political insiders speculated for weeks over which congressional candidates would earn that coveted nod. In the end, the board’s decisions arrived a mere week and a half before the Aug. 23 primary – a boon for the highlighted candidates and a serious blow for those it passed over. And while the Times’ drew some backlash for its selection of three white men (made especially controversial given the diverse field of powerful candidates the board had to choose from), that judgment resulted in them going three for three in the end. Rep. Jerry Nadler, former Trump impeachment attorney Dan Goldman and Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney all emerged victorious.

“A rose by any other name would maybe not get elected”

REP. ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez cast out a wide sweep of endorsements leading up to Tuesday night, many of which paid off. In progressive circles, the well-known lawmaker is often regarded as one of the most coveted endorsements. Five of the seven candidates that Ocasio-Cortez endorsed claimed victory, including state Sen. Jabari Brisport, who cleaned house with over 70% of the vote in District 25, and Gustavo Rivera, who weathered a challenge from Miguelina Camilo in one of the most contentious races of the primary. Although most aboard the AOC train fared well Tuesday, she also endorsed David Alexis and state Sen. Alessandra Biaggi, who both fell short against their longtime incumbent opponents. “A solid, working nod”

WORKING FAMILIES PARTY

Though on first glance it may seem that Tuesday night proved a tough night for the slate of left-wing candidates backed by the Working Families Party, there was a surge of good news for the progressive political party in many New York City state Senate primaries. The WFP unveils a sweeping list of endorsees each election, selecting one person in nearly every race. In two of the most high-profile congressional contests, Biaggi and Assembly Member Yuh-Line Niou fell to their moderate opponents. Still, it’s hardly all doom and gloom for the WFP: Incumbent Rep. Jamaal Bowman easily weathered his moderate challenger, and a handful of state Senate candidates pulled big upsets. “Bummer summer”

REP. RITCHIE TORRES

Some of Rep. Ritchie Torres’ primary endorsements took major blows. Robert Zimmerman secured the nomination in the competitive primary for the 3rd Congressional District on Long Island. Zimmerman parallels many of Torres’ views as a pro-Israel candidate and steadfast in fighting for LGBTQ rights as an out gay man. Torres also backed Assembly Member Nathalia Fernandez for state Senate, and former Rep. Max Rose in his primary against a progressive challenger. But Torres saw losses for Elizabeth Crowley, Angel Vasquez and Camilo in state Senate races in Queens and the Bronx. Camilo especially hurt – Torres helped recruit her to run.

“Mayor who?”

NEW YORK CITY MAYOR ERIC ADAMS

In the first seven months of his tenure, New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ endorsements have all revolved around a common theme: He wants to push Democrats toward the center. While new mayors tend to avoid stepping into contentious intraparty primaries, Adams has had no such qualms. He backed incumbents and political newcomers alike for state Senate, but steered clear of the congressional primaries. His gambit was met with largely poor results Tuesday night. While state Sen. Kevin Parker bested democratic socialist challenger Alexis in District 21, Crowley, Camilo and the controversial Rev. Conrad Tillard all lost decisively to progressives. “Kingmaker down”

REP. ADRIANO ESPAILLAT

Rep. Adriano Espaillat has a history of backing Democratic candidates that have gone on to win in competitive races, including Adams and New York City Council Members Shaun Abreu and Oswald Feliz. The Aug. 23 primary, however, was a less glowing testament to his political power. Espaillat’s support of Camilo in state Senate District 33, Council Member Carlina Rivera in the 10th Congressional District and Angel Vasquez in state Senate District 31, was not enough for the candidates to seize the Democratic nomination. His only silver linings were Fernandez for state Senate District 34 and state Sen. Cordell Cleare, who won a noncompetitive bid for reelection. “Better luck next time”

NEW YORK CITY COUNCIL SPEAKER ADRIENNE ADAMS

As the newly elected speaker of the New York City Council, Adrienne Adams unveiled her first endorsements in the weeks leading up to the election to a swell of anticipation. Many people were eager to see whether she’d back more progressive contenders – like many of her colleagues in the City Council – or more moderate candidates. In the end, her backing of Crowley to represent state Senate District 59, and her ally in the New York City Council, Carlina Rivera, weren’t enough to get either across the finish line with both candidates scooping up a smaller percentage of the vote than many anticipated given their high-profile statuses.

What moderate wave?

In the state Senate, incumbent progressives prevailed and added a socialist to their ranks.

By Rebecca C. Lewis

ASTORIA HAS GONE RED, just not in the way you might be thinking.

The western Queens neighborhood gained its latest democratic socialist representative with the victory of Kristen Gonzalez in the newly drawn District 59, which includes waterfront neighborhoods in that borough, Brooklyn and Manhattan. That means a large part of Astoria, which has been at the heart of the left-wing movement in New York City, will have democratic socialists representing it in the New York City Council, Assembly, state Senate and Congress after Gonzalez presumably wins a noncompetitive November election. Hers is just one of several progressive victories in the Democratic state Senate primaries, an assurance of the left wing’s continued power and influence within state government, even with the loss of two of its leading voices.

Gonzalez attributed her success to the strength of the Democratic Socialists of America and the movement it has built up in recent years and months in New York City. “Our success actually is a result of the success of our Assembly campaigns,” Gonzalez told City & State, referring to a slate of candidates endorsed by the DSA in the June primaries for the lower chamber, most of whom lost their races. She pointed specifically to the campaign of Illapa Sairitupac, who ran to replace Assembly Member Yuh-Line Niou in lower Manhattan. “Our Manhattan operation was fueled by Illapa’s volunteers ... that were cultivated on his campaign,” Gonzalez said. “So for us it’s bigger than a single campaign and a single seat.”

The DSA movement has certainly gained significant momentum since state Sen. Julia Salazar became the first DSA candidate to win a primary back in 2018. Gonzalez will now be the third democratic socialist in the state Senate along with Salazar and state Sen. Jabari Brisport, and join the ranks of fellow Astoria lawmaker Assembly Member Zohran Mamdani as part of the larger class of socialists currently in the Legislature as a whole. “They’re the people who I’ve always admired, they’re the people who inspired me to run,” Gonzalez said.

Gonzalez’s victory also represents a blow to establishment Democrats by easily besting former New York City Council Member Elizabeth Crowley. A member of a once-powerful Queens political dynasty, Crowley spent over half a million dollars, an enormous sum for a primary and far more than Gonzalez spent. She also benefited from a real estate-backed super PAC that ran attack ads against Gonzalez. New York City Mayor Eric Adams also offered his endorsement to Crowley, who ultimately became one of many unsuccessful moderates the mayor backed.

Aiding in Gonzalez’s successful campaign was state Sen. Michael Gianaris, the No. 2 in

“All these folks, a million dollars, and they couldn’t get us.”

– state Sen. Gustavo Rivera, on his wellfunded opponent Miguelina Camilo

State Senate candidate Kristen Gonzalez’s primary win was built on the back of other DSA campaigns for Assembly.

the state Senate and head of his conference’s campaign operations. He also currently represents Astoria and a chunk of Gonzalez’s new district. “I had a personal stake in making sure that those communities continue to be represented well,” Gianaris told City & State. But this is hardly the first contentious primary he’s had a hand in, having helped to orchestrate the ousting of several former Independent Democratic Conference members in 2018. “For me, it’s nothing magical,” Gianaris said. “I just support people that work for their communities and have the support of their communities.” He said the success of candidates he has backed speaks to the levels of political education of voters at the grassroots level in recent years that may not have existed before.

State Sen. Gustavo Rivera was another progressive candidate Gianaris worked to help win his election, this time to keep his seat in the chamber. Rivera faced a tough challenge from Bronx Democratic Party-backed Miguelina Camilo, a moderate. Rivera was one of several left-wing lawmakers who faced insurgents this year and was the closest to losing his seat. Like with Gonzalez, outside spending played a large role in Rivera’s race as super PACs backed by charter school and real estate interests spent big against him. “All these folks, a million dollars, and they couldn’t get us,” Rivera said in an election night victory speech to supporters. He, like Gonzalez, attributed his success to grassroots efforts to reach out to community members with his message.

But the victories were not limited to downstate. In what has become a solidly blue district in the Southern Tier, Working Families Party-backed Lea Webb also won the open race against her more moderate opponent. She now goes on to face Republican Richard David in November to decide who will replace Broome County Sheriff and former state Sen. Fred Akshar. The redrawn district voted overwhelmingly for Joe Biden in 2020, whereas the old district was much more Republican. It means there’s a good chance that Webb will become the latest upstate progressive to join the state Legislature, part of a growing trend.

The Legislature will lose two of its strongest progressive voices in Assembly Member Yuh-Line Niou and state Sen. Alessandra Biaggi, who both lost their respective congressional bids and gave up their seats for those runs. With Rivera’s race as close as it was, and challenges to other left-wing lawmakers, the state Senate could have experienced a significant power shift this year. But the progressive movement proved it remains strong. ■

This article is from: