Who will lead the Queens GOP?

From the Times Ledger:

Phil Ragusa, chairman of the Queens Republican Party, died Tuesday surrounded by his family after a short battle with leukemia, the party said.

Ragusa, who lived in Whitestone, had headed the Queens GOP party since 2007, according to spokesman Robert Hornak.
Bayside Pilates

“Chairman Ragusa will be remembered for his integrity and commitment to the democratic process and was viewed by many as not just a friend but a mentor,” Hornak said.

Ragusa was 74.

Hornak replaces Tabone on Catsimitidis team

From the NY Post:

A political operative who recently left his job at the city Board of Elections was late to work so often that he was in jeopardy of being fired — before he landed a job with mayoral candidate John Catsimatidis.

Robert Hornak was late to his city job 171 times over the past 14 months, according to a time and attendance sheet obtained by The Post.

Only seven of those late arrivals were excused by his bosses in the Queens office, the document shows.

His tardiness spanned his employment on the board, from Jan. 23, 2012, to April 5, 2013, when he resigned to work for Catsimatidis directing his campaign’s Queens field operation.

He earned $60,871 and was facing a disciplinary hearing when he quit, sources said. His final check included six days of unused vacation and sick time, a board official confirmed.

Hornak blamed his tardiness on “a medical disability that contributed to my being a few minutes late on a number of occasions. I requested and received a reasonable accommodation to my work schedule, and after that was granted, I did not have another unexcused lateness the rest of my tenure.”

But one Board of Elections official who requested anonymity said Hornak was often hours late to work.

“Sometimes two hours, an hour and a half,” the official said.

A spokesman for Catsimatidis declined comment.

Gallagher consulting for Queens GOP

From the NY Post:

Disgraced ex-Councilman Dennis Gallagher now works with a Queens consultant who’s under attack for trying to strong-arm GOP candidates into hiring him, The Post has learned.

Gallagher, who stepped down in 2008 after pleading guilty to sexual-abuse charges stemming from accusations that he raped a woman in his Middle Village office, is listed on a city government database as an “additional lobbyist” with GSP Consulting, a Sunnyside-based firm run by Jay Golub, a dentist.

Gallagher, a Republican, confirmed that he does consulting work with Golub and that he’s done consulting for Councilman Peter Koo (R-Queens) but said he hasn’t done any work for Republicans in Queens “on a paid basis.”

Robert Hornak, executive director of the Queens GOP, said Gallagher “has never been a hired consultant for the Queens GOP.”

This is kind of old news. Wonder why this is just coming out now?

Good luck with that...

From the Daily News:

The Queens Republican Party is looking to expand into Forest Hills, an area historically dominated by Democrats and a rival GOP faction.

The new American Eagle Republican Club of Forest Hills is hosting its first meeting Tuesday night at the Forest Hills Jewish Center.

The move is part of a larger plan for the party to branch out beyond its tradition base in northeastern Queens.

“After the [Bob] Turner victory, Forest Hills jumped to the top of the list,” said Robert Hornak, a spokesman for the Queens GOP.

Republicans were energized by Turner’s win of the 9th Congressional District seat long held by former Rep. Anthony Weiner.

Party officials said they are hoping that success translates into momentum for other Republican candidates in upcoming state and citywide elections.

Battle for control of Queens GOP

From the Daily News:

Former City Councilman Thomas Ognibene said he may challenge Queens County GOP leader Phil Ragusa at the upcoming organizational meeting.

"A lot of people feel the party can move forward. There are new opportunities in 2012," he said. "Real leadership can make a difference."

Queens Republicans are eager to harness the momentum created by newly elected Congressman Bob Turner's victory and grab back state legislative seats they lost in recent years.

"The county [party] adds nothing," said Ognibene. "They do not raise money and they do not provide expertise."

Queens GOP spokesman Robert Hornak said Ognibene's criticism was unfair and unfounded.

"If Tom feels compelled to run for county chairman, he's certainly free to do so," said Hornak. "If he had been more involved in the county organization over the past few years he would know our field operations and fund-raising has increased."

Ragusa was recovering from surgery and was not immediately available for comment.

Hornak said Ragusa has enough votes to be reelected.

Bloomberg tries to hurt fellow GOP candidate

From the Daily News:

The Free and Equal Elections Foundation, a nonpartisan Chicago-based organization that advocates for ballot access reform, chastised Mayor Bloomberg's campaign for petition challenges filed by one of his GOP operatives, John Haggerty Jr.

The fairly new foundation, which includes Ballot Access News editor and publisher Richard Winger among its board members, released the following statement:

"...what about the candidates whose petitions are being challenged?
Will they be able to see their names on the ballot?
Not if Mayor Bloomberg has his way.""

The statement goes on to note that Haggerty, referred to as the mayor's "personal petitioning coordinator, challenged the petitions of a number of candidates, including Robert Hornak, the GOP Queens BP hopeful, and everyone seeking to run citywide on the Conservative Party line.

Hey, remember this? I guess the mayor's really a Marshall man.

Boro prez candidates a bunch of losers

From City Hall:

When Dave Kerpen announced his candidacy for the Queens borough presidency a month ago, he promised an ambitious social networking campaign.

It took only three weeks for Kerpen to determine the effort futile.

After learning that several “young Council members” who had privately promised to back his candidacy would instead be attending the April 29 campaign kickoff for Marshall, Kerpen decided to drop out of the race, he said.

You didn't get the backing of other tweeders (who overturned term limits) so you gave up? LOSER.

Republican candidate and Urban Elephants blogger Robert Hornak appears to be mounting the most formidable campaign against Marshall. Hornak would provide outspoken leadership akin to that of Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz (D), he said, in trying to promote the development of Willets Point and other foundering redevelopment projects.

Another land grabber, eh? If Marty Markowitz is your idol, you're a truly sad human being.

...despite her statements to the contrary, speculation remains that the aging Marshall may yet decide not to run for re-election. The theory goes that Marshall could petition onto the ballot, and then drop out, allowing Pheffer, who was likely to receive the party’s backing before the term-limits extension, to take Marshall’s place via a party vacancy committee.

Great. This borough is such a fucking joke.