The Albany Red Sox

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

The New York Sun
NY Sun
NEW YORK SUN CONTRIBUTOR

The Democrats of the state Senate are the Red Sox of New York politics. Although they represent the dominant party of the state, they can’t seem to win a majority. Apart from the anomaly of 1965, during a court fight over district boundaries, Republicans have held sway in the upper house of the Legislature since 1938.


Like the baseball team from Boston, however, the Senate Democrats think they’re on the verge of breaking their losing streak. They don’t expect to take control this year, but hope at least to whittle down the GOP majority enough to put the championship within reach in 2006 or 2008.


Meanwhile the George Steinbrenner of this analogy – Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno – is sparing no expense to keep the Democrats’ curse alive and preserve his GOP dynasty.


Much more is at stake than bragging rights. Regime change in the Senate would give Democrats control over both houses of the Legislature and – if a Democrat wins for governor in 2006 – turn Albany into a one-party town.


Senate Republicans, while not conservative by national standards, are more likely than the Democrats to resist new regulations on business, push for tougher anti-crime policies, and go along with cuts in state spending and taxes.They also tend to represent the interests of the suburbs and upstate areas, while most Democratic senators come from New York City.


In dollar terms, the competition is no contest.The Senate Republican Campaign Committee amassed $6.3 million for this year’s legislative elections.As of the end of September, it still had $4.2 million in the bank.


The Democratic Senate Campaign Committee, by contrast, raised $1.1 million.At the end of last month it had $475,000 in the bank, but that was less than the $511,000 it still owed on the 2002 election.


But the minority leader of the Senate, David Paterson of Harlem, has advantages of his own. To begin with, there are 5.2 million enrolled Democrats in New York State, compared to 3.1 million Republicans. The tight race between President Bush and Senator Kerry could boost Democratic turnout in New York. And Mr. Paterson’s candidates, who portray themselves as agents of change, might benefit from anti-Albany sentiment in the electorate.


“New York is a swing state in the effort to take control of the state Senate,” a Democratic activist, Ethan Geto, said at a “Downtown for Democracy” fund-raiser last Monday at New York City’s Avalon night club.


But the Senate Republicans aren’t conceding anything.


“We fully expect to maintain a majority and are running aggressively to add to the majority,” a spokesman for the GOP, John McArdle, said last week.”We feel good about our chances.”


Just as the presidential race turns on the outcome in a few swing states, the struggle for the Senate is being waged in a handful of competitive districts.To win a majority in the 62-seat house, Democrats have to add eight seats to their present 24. Mr. Paterson said he hopes to win two of those eight this November.


“My disagreement with the strategy in the past was they tried to fight too many battles at the same time,” Mr. Paterson, who was elected minority leader in 2002, told The New York Sun. “What you want to do is what they teach the weaker person in martial arts – apply your strength to their weakness. What you’ve got to do is put all your eggs in one or two baskets.”


The two baskets he chose are both in New York City: the 34th Senate district, which straddles the Bronx and Westchester County, and the 28th district, covering parts the Bronx and Manhattan.


The 34th was the longtime stronghold of Guy Velella, a Republican, before he went to jail earlier this year for taking bribes, but most of its registered voters are Democrats. The Democrats are banking on Assemblyman Jeffrey Klein to win a three-way race against a Republican, former police detective John Fleming, and the candidate of the Independence Party, Assemblyman Stephen Kaufman.


In the 28th district, Democrats view the incumbent, Olga Mendez, as vulnerable because she flipped to Republican from Democrat after the 2002 election. Her challenger is a member of the City Council, Jose Serrano.


But so far the biggest investment by the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee, of $50,000, went to the Democratic running against a Syracuse-area Republican, Nancy Larraine Hoffmann. Mr. Paterson also has high hopes for a member of the Yonkers City Council,Andrea Stewart-Cousins, who is making a run against Republican Senator Nicholas Spano of Westchester.


To judge by their spending patterns,however, the Senate Republicans are putting their eggs in different baskets.


According to the most recent filings available, the Senate Republican Campaign has devoted $517,500 to defeating Senator Neil Breslin of Albany County, which is more than the GOP has spent on any other race thus far. The GOP candidate is the county comptroller, Michael Conners, a Democrat who is expect ed to switch parties if elected.


The next biggest investment by Mr. Bruno was $435,000 in defense of Senator Carl Marcellino, a Republican of Long Island. He faces a challenge from a real estate broker, Chad Brisbane, who is supported by the Nassau County executive, Thomas Suozzi, and his Fix Albany political action committee.


As of last month, the Senate Republicans had spent $224,150 in support of Ms. Mendez, $280,000 in support of Ms. Hoffmann, but nothing on Mr. Spano’s race. Meanwhile, they had contributed $255,500 to the Republican underdog in a Brooklyn-Staten Island Senate district, Al Curtis. He is hoping to upset a Democrat, Diane Savino, for the seat currently occupied by Senator Seymour Lachman, a Democrat who is retiring this year.


In other words, Mr. Bruno had enough cash to more than match what the Democrats were spending on their key races, protect other potentially vulnerable incumbents, and still invest in some long shots elsewhere in the state.


“All of our incumbents – even in those races where there are spirited challenges – will have the resources they need to run effective campaigns,” Mr. McArdle said.


Mr. Paterson said he suspects some of Mr. Bruno’s investments were little more than feints, meant to distract him from his original game plan.


“As much as they’ve gotten me to spread out my resources, I’ve gotten them to spread theirs out, too,” he said. “It’s a tremendous chess game between an extraordinary player, Joe Bruno, and one who wants to be an extraordinary player, me.”

NY Sun
NEW YORK SUN CONTRIBUTOR

This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.


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