From the Daily News:Assemblywoman Nettie Mayersohn, the dean of the Queens delegation who was first elected back in 1982, announced today she is retiring.
Our Lisa L. Colangelo reports:
"After much deliberation, I believe the time has come for me to step aside," said Mayersohn, who turns 87 in May and represents the 27th Assembly district.
Mayersohn’s longtime aide, Michael Simanowitz, is being touted as the frontrunner to replace her.
Voters will pick Mayersohn’s replacement in a special election. But placement on the critical ballot is chosen by the four District Leaders - Mayersohn, Simanowitz, former Councilman Morty Povman and Charlotte Scheman.
Thank goodness the outcome has already been decided!
86 comments:
It's called "pulling a Manton".
No primary. No democracy
"Hey shaddup you feis. We're in charge here." - The Clubhouse Gang
Retire her drivers license as well.
But when is Toby retiring?
Interesting turn of events. Could her sudden retirement have anything to do with her best friend Al Hevesi?
Andrew Rocco will provide real representation!
Before Andrew Rocco represents anyone shouldn't we find out who he is?
I agree andrew rocco whould serve new york with honor.
in queens county,is not democrat dictatorship grand?
That would be awesome if andy. rocco gives the heir an race. Queens needs a good race
Would love to see Al Centola run, wonder if its in his district?
Anyone know?
Al centola. He would be a good candidate for congress. He would restore integrity to washington
I've never heard of Simanowitz. Where do I sign up to run?
Andy Rocco is a dedicated teacher and community activist, he will give college point and the 27th assembly district the representation they deserve!
I hope that Simanowitz has an opponent.
The prospect of an unchallenged candidate reminds me too much of Russia.
Instead of going with same old story the district should look at Rocco really seriously. He's new on the scene but you'll be hearing about him- a stand up community member who would do well in representing us.
Sergey Kadinsky, I like your comment; I originally come from another country and I am in agreement with you. Local politics need some real democracy. Seriously? Since 1982??? The passing of the baton to a successor reminds me so much of the communist behavior, so to speak (Fidel to his brother Raul). I have never been a fan of the structure of a special election where everything can be so easily fixed. We, the people of the 27th district, would like to be better represented. We do not wish to be fed the same sour candy in a different wrapper. I do not know who this Simanowitz is, so I guess he has not done that much for us. I don't recall seeing him in the local civic meetings that I have attended. So how do I know that he cares for the people of this area??? If what the blog writer says in what seems to be a sarcastic tone is true, and that it has already been decided who will run as the democratic candidate, then where is the transparency and integrity of an election??? I would even call it nepotism. Let's all inherit our bosses', parents', friends' jobs.
Lady J
Nettie Mayersohn is one of the greatest legislators NYS has ever produced. We were very lucky to have her for 28 years in the assembly. Michael Simanowitz is going to be a great legislator as well. He is going to be elected because he has broken his ass for 15 years attending meets at all hours of the day and night.
Of course the sour grapes caucus that regular posts here doesn't care to know anything. All they care to do is whine about whatever it is they cannot control.
WHEN IS ACKERMAN RETIRING?
Thank you for agreeing with me Anonymous individual. You are right; we are "unhappy about the things that we cannot control" because that is EXACTLY the problem: We don't want control, but we also don't want a select elite group to have it. This is not a struggle over power and control; This is a call for real democracy, for having the opportunity to vote on everything, and for getting equal representation across the board. We don't want a handful of leaders to make the decision for us. We want to vote on all the things that affect us. It is a RIGHT that Americans have.
Lady J
Great NYS legislator? I see that being a good legislator just like beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I don't think the people making minimum wage would agree with your statement. Was simanowitz with her the times that she decided not to vote in support of increasing the minimum wage?
Queen Native
fresh blood is needed in Queens.
Who said a teacher? Yes, I think we need someone who knows what it really means to be like the rest of us teachers. All my support!!!
Never did think of Al for Congress but you make a good point. Don't know if he would bring integrity back to all of Washington , but I do know our district would be well represented and he would be a representative of integrity for the people.
I have been following him for a few years now and have to say he has impressed me.
WHEN IS ACKERMAN RETIRING?
When Claire Shillman flies!!!
What happened between June 2010 when there could have a been a primary to pick the Democratic nominee and March 2011? The timing is pure Queens Crap.
Why didn't Mayerson announce her retirement last year, when there could have been a real primary for her replacement, instead of running again, unopposed? she must have known that she would not be completing her term.
Shame on her.
Retiring? That's not a picture of a corpse? Ye gads!
Of course she knew she was retiring for a while. But since she ran unopposed a couple of times throughout her career, she thought she would do the same for her protege and leave him all set up. Queens dictatorship at its best. Democracy has been compromised. I wonder if this could be a good case for transparency international.
Al Centola ? Not for Assembly, he should be running for President. He will appoint Steve Behar as Commerce Secretary, that guy Farouk from Richmond Hill as Defense Secretary, Mike Neibauer as chief startegist, etc. Why think so small ? The only reality you live in is the 15 people on this blog. 12 of them are people who came in fourth or fifth in a political campaign and they have spent the last ten years figuring out ways to blog to the same 12 other people about their opponents consultants (yes, the dreaded Parkside Group.) How sad.
Maybe the outrage of demonstrators in Albany should be redirected to our local representatives offices!
i.e.
Put a ring of angry voters around Moby Stav's hideout and smoke her out!
Whew...considering her ample girth...I estimate that would take a full battalion.
But, alas, that would require a less apathetic public.
Time to unplug your I-pods and take more notice of how your government has been screwing you!
How sad???????? Whoever posted that lighten up. As for steve behar he ran against the machine on his own. And did well. A tough accomplishment. He stepped up for bayside. Bravo. I hope he runs agains.that's not sad that's being a warrior.
Steve Behar is a warrior ? Iu assume he has his Superman pajamas and cape on as we speak, so that may qualify as a warrior.
He did well ? He came in last when ran for City Council out of 5 candidates and he came in last when he ran for Assembly out of 4 candidates.
Sounds like the voters have rejected this warrior.
Hey, I was planning on re-writing my will and was going to give all my money to Al Centola.
I also have to come up with a name for my new kid, I'm thinking of naming him Al Centola.
You know, I'm not Al Centola, this is just a coincidence that I mentioned the name Al Centola, but I really think Al Centola should be given some very powerful position.
"As for steve behar he ran against the machine on his own. And did well."
Yeah right. In your dreams.
There's someone on here that's really freaking obsessed with Steve Behar. Every chance they get, they feel it necessary to slam the guy, and he's not even an office holder. The machine must be nervous.
I'm really looking forward to voting for Andrew Rocco, at least College Point will finally have representation!
For the record, I have no desire to run for Political office. Thank you but NO THANKS.
Not everyone commenting on this blog is someone who ran for some type of political position. And not all residents of this area are completely oblivious to what goes on in their community. Some of us actually read and stay involved, and our voices and votes count.
These are our opinions and we have the right to voice them on this blog or wherever else.
its funny how people deny posting things anonymously, but then they respond by name within ten minutes of somebody posting something about them.
what is the "machine" btw ?
Al Centola responded an hour and a half after a comment was made about him, BTW.
The machine is the powerful Dem establishment that picks their own candidates and their is no real opposition to their choices.very few areas in queens ever have races where people get a real choice
why dont people petition to get on the ballot, like the "machine" candidates, and then run for office ? the truth is that NO ONE gets thrown off the balllot anymore. The laws have been liberalized. You simply need to get the minimum under the law, plus a little more cause errors occur. its the same rules for the "machine" candidate.
But again, what exactly is the "machine" ? you said it was the "Dem establishment" ? well, what is that ? the Democratic County organization ? Most district leaders are over 70 years old, most political clubs are dead, there are 4 district leaders in an Assembly district of 130,000 citizens, half the times they hate each other, and the County organization has no staff and does nothing to really help cncadidates.
Are you telling me the little old lady Distrct Leader has control over 130,000 voters ? i dont buy it. i doubt most of them have control over 30 votes.
My sense is that "insurgent" candidates are simply bad candidates, that dont connect with voters, dont connect with constituencies like unions, dont connect with donors, and cant really put anything together. Insurgents do win sometimes or come real close. Jim Gennaro won. Danny Dromm won. Jimmy van Bramer won. They actually had support. maybe the Steve Behars of the world (and others, but I use him as an example) dont actually have any support.
with the county endorsement comes advantages
unions, $$$$$$$, troops, operatives who wanna kiss ass, politicos if not running hand out fliers etc.
not to mention lobbyists in queens have corrupted the whole system
what "county endorsement" ? what does that mean ? the 4 distircrt leaders in an assembly district ? the unions always do their own thing. go speak to dromm, gioia, van bramer, gennaro, etc.
politicos who hand out fliers ? really ? who ? there aare no volunteers anymore from politicians. some councilmans ends 2 staff, maybe, to vounteer once a qweek for 3 hours, and that decides elections ? why cant these great "man of the people" candidates overcome that ? they dont have three people who support them in the district ?
sound slike candidates who lsoe can only claim some grand conspiracy as an excuse for their sdort comings.
if you lost the elction for high school president cause no one liked you, and you had no friends, and you are kinda wierd, guess what, you are not winning for public office.
Yes, I'm sure Aravella Simotas, Ed Braunstein and Mike Miller - 3 nobodies - would have gotten elected had they not had the backing of the Machine because they did so much for their respective communities.
And who pays for legal challenges to signatures to get opponents off the ballot? The Machine. Who makes deals with opponents to get them to drop out so that candidates can run unopposed? The Machine.
Thanx Crapper. well said
1) the three candidates you mentioned did as much as any of their opponents did. so if their opponents had the support of the "machine" thats ok ? again, what is this "machine" ?
2) what legal challenges ? who was thrown off the ballot ? what legitimate candidate was "thrown" off the ballot in these races ? in fact, there was actually no ballot challenges in these races. Steve Behar was not challenged in the assembly district, Jeremiah Pearson dropped out in the Simotas race on his own, John Ciafone admitted he actually didnt live in the distict and dropped out himself.
Again, specifically, by name, who was thrown off the ballot in these races ?
I am not sure its "well said" cause saying somethhing, means nothing, if its not true.
Again, by name, who was thrown off the ballot in the Braunstein, Simotas and Miller races ?
I didn't say anyone was thrown off the ballot in those races. You tweeders have a hard time with reading comprehension. I said they had the backing of the Machine. Aravella did have a formidable opponent who at the last moment dropped out, probably because a deal was made. And as I recall, Mike Miller was anointed by the Machine who had Gov. Paterson interfere with the election process when he didn't have to in order to allow Miller to be the candidate of the Dems.
Yeah they got on the ballot legally and then the Machine decided they didn't want to risk the seat being occupied by a West Indian they couldn't control, so they had Paterson make the call. The fact that Miller followed Elizabeth Crowley around like a puppy dog is proof of that.
Yeah, as I thought, there is not a lot of reality to those earlier statements.
Deals that you believe happened, but you have no proof of.
Random personal attacks on people.
The Machine, the Machine !!!!
There is no other explanation. We weren't born yesterday. Random attacks? I guess the rest is true, and you know it, hack.
Braunstein got his position because his uncle is a lobbyist.
How can anyone deny the advantages of county support? All though severely advantaged Braunstein had a race and that was good for the district. Simotas and miller walked into the seat. The machine at work.
If one candidate is severely advantage then is it really a race?
No, it's not a race; it's setting up a person in an ideal cushiony position to make sure that they will win (Rigged elections) bunch of corrupts, I wish someone would expose them all.
Andy Rocco has my vote. He's a regular guy who knows what it its like to be a college point resident, he's lived there his whole life, educated its students, and knows how broken the system is. We need someone who's been through hell -- so he knows how to fix it!!
long lines of construction workers were at Braunstein"s campaign office prior to the election,next to the municipal parking lot in bayside.
i was told by one that they were prepping to hand out his campaign literature.
do you think he will support these unions in the future legislation in Albany ?
After speaking to some of the local community leaders, I feel that Simanowitz is qualified and understands the district.
But at the same time, I still would like to see a competitive election. It's up to the Republicans to nominate a worthy candidate.
the adavantage of the party hacks is not goood for the people of queens
maybe good for the stavisky business plan but not for the people of queens
i dont know simanowitz and he may be qaulified and a good assembly candidate. but why is he afraid of wanting to give the constiuents a choice
what is he afraid of? thanx crapper for the good feedback
Al Centola responded an hour and a half after a comment was made about him, BTW.
Thank You!!!
I thought she retired 10 years ago.
At least thats when she stopped working.
"After speaking to some of the local community leaders, I feel that Simanowitz is qualified and understands the district."
- - - - - - - - -
This is irrelevant. Mayersohn knew that at 87, she's going to retire, and should have not seeked re-election last year. This would have opened up the slot and generated a number of qualified primary contestants.
Maybe the county leaders should lobby albany that the special election include a dem primary. That's sounds like the fairest way. If nettie and simanowits did this on purpose. Then he is unfit for office.
Andy Rocco has my vote and my confidence! enough with the insiders and fixed elections!
Ed Braunstein's uncle Brian Meara helped funnel a quarter of a million dollars into Braunstein's campaign. The only job Braunstein ever had was answering the phone in Shelly Silver's office. HE HAD DONE NOTHING IN THE COMMUNITY EITHER.
We is unfit for office. Have you ever heard him? He's a moron. The ultimate empty suit puppet politician.
But now Brian Meara can get huge money from lobbying clients because he owns an Assembly seat.
Yes, If they plotted this together then he is not qualified to be our assemblyman. I wouldn't vote for someone whose integrity, honesty, and sense of fairness is lacking. I'm a registered democrat, but if I don't see that there is a fair race for the democratic candidate. I'm not voting democrat. I just don't want to vote for someone because that is the only choice. My family and friends in the area all feel this way.
A qualified person would have stopped working for her and would have run against her as opposed to just being the un-elected assemblyman riding her coat tails. Not much has come from that duo in the last decade. Aside from some health care reforms related to AIDS in the 80s, nothing much has been done for the other issues that plague us in this district. I'm not particularly happy about her support of the commuter's tax whenever it's been in effect. And I'm even less happy about her lack of support for increasing minimum wage. Shame on them!!!
how many votes do you think a tea party advocate candidate would get in Queens County ? only rino's and liberals need apply.
we are stuck in a political swamp and will keep on paying for crap government, or leave.
"It's up to the Republicans to nominate a worthy candidate."
And it's up to the voeters, who are overwhelmingly registered as Democrats, to cross the line and vote Republican? Not gonna happen. So why should a "worthy candidate" put themselves out like that?
Who's going to pay for the special election? Dem. Party? taxpayers?
Saw a great pic of Dennis Rings law partner Elio Forcina and Dennis Rings client Doofey Dan Halloran in the Whitestone times. What a dynamic trio they make.
andrew rocco is a dem and a uft rep.
if he is on the republican line all the dems can still vote for him
sorry simonowitz you will not get away with trying to fool central queens
Andrew Rocco would be a perfect fit. He is a dedicated teacher and always willing to go the extra mile.
Braunstein spent $230,000 and Behar spent $25,000 and Braunstein got 1,000 more votes.
And he had to fake being jewish to do it!
Braunstein worked for Shelly Silver and was financed by his lobbyist Uncle Brain Meara and had the nerve to send campaign mail saying he was an "Independent Reformer"!
Braunstein also sent campaign mail saying he would "rein in the special interests".
Funny because the special interests actually paid for that mail piece!
To qoute the Gary Ackerman Robo Call "ED BRAUNSTEIN IS UNDER ATTACK" LOL
Ed had a fight for it because the insurgents in North queens stood up unlike other places in queens
i wish ed well
with that being said simonowitz must not get a free pass
Noone can predict what is going to happen so the one who said that democrats won't cross the line to vote republican and that it's just not going to happen, if I were you, I would rethink that. We did for Halloran. We vote for who is going to better represent us, not for who the party is feeding us.
Andy Rocco is a conservative democrat, a teacher, active in the community, comes from an old college point family like many of us in this area. We identify with him because he is like us, not some party puppet. When a good person runs, whether they are on the democratic or republican ballot is irrelevant.
We want someone like us to represent us,not someone who is going to get thousands of dollars from businesses and once they win will be slaves to their major campaign contributors.
Is Rocco running or is it hearsay?
IS ROCCO PART OF THE VERDI DYNASTY?
What is the verdi dynasty
The districts are gerrymandered so the incumbent party always wins. Without a primary, the party bosses decide who will be the next incumbent. And that incumbent will only answer to the party. Yes, it is a machine.
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