“Overall the vast majority of New Yorkers are satisfied. … In terms of their personal life and their personal affairs, they’re not in a state of crisis.”
Public Advocate Letitia James on Mayor de Blasio’s standing
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Cuomo Keeps it Real Classy With Fact-Free Dig at De BlasioNew York Times
“Speaker after speaker praised Mr. Bloomberg, who had conceived of the tech campus when he was mayor and put the project in motion. But it was Mr. Cuomo who damned the current mayor with not even the faintest of praise. ‘Mike Bloomberg had the formula: vision plus confidence plus achievement equals progress,’ Mr. Cuomo said. ‘Mike’s formula was shared by my father Mario Cuomo, who called himself a pragmatic progressive. Think about it. A progressive who gets things done, and gets results.’ The governor did not include Mr. de Blasio, who sees himself as a paragon of progressivism, in his commendations.”
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Nicole Malliotakis’s Growing List of Campaign PromisesGotham Gazette
“Malliotakis is seeking to become the first female Mayor of New York City, as well as the first Latina and, at 36, the youngest since John P. Mitchel assumed the office in 1914 and the third youngest ever. Throughout the months since she entered the race, she has been making political declarations, explaining her stances on issues, and unveiling several somewhat detailed policy agendas on particular topics, like homelessness and education. It has also been clear that she still must develop more policy stances and proposals, which the general election season should entice.”
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What Will De Blasio II Be Like?Village Voice
“Last night, he made a stab at what comes next, and much of it was less inspired. There was the vague promise to create a hundred thousand “good-paying” jobs. There was the proposed millionaires tax to fund upgrades to our crumbling subway system, an idea that may eventually get somewhere in Albany if Republicans are driven from the state senate majority, but also one that won’t do nearly enough to address the peril straphangers face. There was his hope, which is much more significant, to expand pre-K to three-year-olds. But what else? There’s no point in worrying about whether de Blasio has a ‘mandate’ to do anything. He’ll be a re-elected mayor. The City Council, no matter what, will be in agreement with most of what he stands for, even if it grows a bit more combative. If de Blasio wants to think bigger, he can. Will he?”
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Terrible Turnout and Other Takeaways from the ’17 Primary RaceNY Daily News
“While there have been periodic spikes in turnout for Democratic mayoral primaries, the trend in New York City has been dismal of late. There have been exceptions. In 1989, turnout was 50 percent when David Dinkins bested incumbent Ed Koch. In 2001 it hit nearly 30 percent, when 785,365 Democrats showed up for a primary delayed by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. … Tuesday featured record spending by a Bronx city council candidate who barely won but could be accused of spending like Paris Hilton with little to show in return. Retiring Assemblyman Mark Gjonaj spent a mind-bending $716,000 to get just 3,326 votes — that’s $215 per vote. This got him just 368 votes more than his main rival, Marjorie Velazquez, who spent $164,000 ($55 per vote).”