United And Strong: Boro Dems Gain Strength In Senate
By DOMENICK RAFTER
Bucking a national - and to a smaller extent statewide - trend, all of Queens' incumbent Democratic legislators won re-election. Though the party faced stiff headwinds nationally, Democrats in the borough fared very well. For the first time in history, there will be no Republican legislators in Albany from Queens.
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| Chelsea Clinton hands out election handbills for Anthony Weiner in Forest Hills Tuesday evening.
Tribune Photo by Ira Cohen |
After two consecutive close races for the seat held by Sen. Frank Padavan (R-Bellerose) for the last 38 years, former Councilman Tony Avella threw the knock-out punch Tuesday, defeating the borough's last GOP state legislator 53-47 percent. Celebrating at Sullivan's in Bayside on election night, Avella was joined by Sen.-elect Mike Gianaris, who gave up his Assembly seat to run for the post vacated by retiring George Onorato (D-Astoria). They were joined by Sens. Toby Stavisky (D-Flushing) and Jose Peralta (D-Corona), as well as Assemblywoman Grace Meng (D-Flushing).
The rhetoric of the "Queens Coalition" was focused on bringing true reform and transparency to the most dysfunctional state legislature in the country. Later in the evening, Avella spoke of bringing "democracy with a lower-case 'd" back to New York.
The strength of the coalition is bolstered by the re-election of State Sen. Joe Addabbo Jr. (D-Howard Beach), who fended off a challenge from former City Councilman Anthony Como in his South Central Queens district, 57-43 percent. Addabbo won the seat from longtime incumbent Republican Serf Maltese in 2008. The race appeared to tighten in final weeks and Republicans heavily targeted the seat.
Como criticized Addabbo's votes on suspending the STAR rebate program and reinstating the sales tax, and attempted to tie Addabbo to Senate leaders Malcolm Smith and John Sampson after the state Inspector General's scathing report on AEG's bid to manage the VLTs at Aqueduct earlier this year.
Elsewhere in the borough, Assemblyman Andrew Hevesi (D-Forest Hills) survived a closer-than-expected challenge from Republican Alex Powietrzynski 54-41 percent with 6 percent going to Independent Joseph Tiraco, while Assemblywoman Marge Markey (D-Maspeth) defeated florist Anthony Nunziato 60-40 percent. Both candidates received support from statewide Republicans, including from State GOP chair Ed Cox, who campaigned with them in Forest Hills and Middle Village last month.
Assembly members Audrey Pheffer (D-Rockaway Park), David Weprin (D-Little Neck), Catherine Nolan (D-Ridgewood), and Michael Miller (D-Woodhaven) all won decisive victories.
Democrats kept all statewide offices. In the race for governor, Attorney General Andrew Cuomo soundly defeated Republican candidate Carl Paladino 62-34 percent. Cuomo won more than 80 percent of the vote in New York City. U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-New York) defeated his GOP opponent by a 2-1 margin to be re-elected to a third term, and U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-New York) won the right to finish out Hillary Clinton's Senate term, defeating former U.S. Rep. Joe DioGuardi 62-38 percent. Gillibrand will face voters again for a full term in 2012.
The race to succeed Governor-elect Cuomo as Attorney General ended in a decisive win for Manhattan State Sen. Eric Schneiderman, who defeated Staten Island DA Dan Donovan 55-44 percent. Mayor Mike Bloomberg and former Mayor Ed Koch had endorsed Donovan. In the closest statewide race, Democratic incumbent Comptroller Tom DiNapoli defeated Republican candidate Harry Wilson 50-47 percent.
Nationally, the trend was very different. Losing more than 60 seats, and control of the U.S. House of Representatives, Democrats find themselves with their smallest minority in the body in more than 60 years. Five Democratic seats in New York State flipped to the GOP. Democrats also suffered multiple House losses in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Virginia, Florida, Indiana and President Barack Obama's home state of Illinois, where Democrats also lost the Senate seat Obama once held.
Closer to home, all of Queens' Democratic House members were reelected, though U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-Kew Gardens) defeated GOP candidate Bob Turner by a much smaller than usual margin of 59-41 percent.
Reach Reporter Domenick Rafter at drafter@queenstribune.com or (718) 357-7400, Ext. 125.