The first Republican candidate has thrown his hat in the ring to replace federally-indicted Councilmember Dan Halloran. Dennis Saffran, 57, said he is running in the 19th Council District to restore “the tradition of integrity and honesty in government.” The attorney from Douglaston ran for the seat in 2001 and narrowly lost to then-Councilmember Tony [...]
A Flushing urban planner officially joined District 19’s City Council race while another candidate bowed out. Democrat Paul Graziano kicked off his campaign on March 25 at Bowne Park to unseat Republican incumbent Councilmember Dan Halloran. “My campaign is very simple. Protect your neighborhood. Do no harm,” said Graziano, a lifelong North Flushing resident. “It’s [...]
The following candidates have received backings . . . New York City Mayor Former Councilmember Sal Albanese was endorsed by the Transport Workers Union Local 101 in the Democratic mayoral primary, while his opponent City Council Speaker Christine Quinn landed support from the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union. New York City Comptroller Manhattan Borough [...]
Austin Shafran has gained the endorsement of UFCW Local 1500 in his bid for City Council. “This is a high-priority council race for our members, and we know that Austin is the candidate who will fight the hardest to strengthen and expand the middle class,” said Bruce Both, president of the state’s grocery workers union. [...]
A former mainstay in the Cuomo administration has officially announced his intent to run for City Council. Austin Shafran, 32, resigned from his post as vice president of public affairs for Empire State Development (ESD) on January 18 to enter what is now a four-way Democratic primary race for the 19th District. “I’ve played a [...]
Thanksgiving had a new meaning this year for thousands of Sandy victims throughout New York, who received Thanksgiving dinner donations at the request of Governor Andrew Cuomo. Boxes filled with cranberry sauce, vegetables, stuffing, gravy and other Thanksgiving dishes, along with thousands of turkeys, were delivered to New Yorkers affected by the storm. On Wednesday, [...]
A handful of political hopefuls in northeast Queens are already mulling over a chance to join the city’s lawmaking body next year. The draw of taking over one vacant city council seat and possibly ousting one of the borough’s only two Republicans in another district has been luring in a number of interested candidates. Councilmember [...]
