Category Archives: City Politics

Catsimatidis v. MTA (Round 1)



Republican mayoral candidate John Catsimatidis and Assembly Member Nicole Malliotakis held a press conference today to criticize the MTA and it’s scheduled increase of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge toll.

In this report, we cover what Catsimatidis had to say about some of his rivals, including one who was chairman of the MTA, and his suggestion as to how two of those rivals could help the Republican Party.

We’ll have more about their press conference in a later report.

Mayoral Mashup: 31st CD Special Election Edition



In our Mayoral Mashup we talk with voters, as well as political and policy leaders, about what they see as the most important issue facing New York City’s next mayor.

For this Mayoral Mashup we spoke with Rockaway voters participating in the 31st Council District special election and asked one simple question:  What do you see as the most important issue that our next mayor will face upon taking office?  Watch to find out what they had to say.

You can watch previous Mayoral Mashups here (with voters at a mayoral candidate forum) and here (with Dick Ravitch).

Republican Primary Voters: Where to find them



As the Republican mayoral primary heats up, the candidates face a fundamental challenge: finding their primary voters in overwhelmingly Democratic New York City.  To develop a more detailed understanding of the Republican search for primary voters, we’ve been doing some analysis of voter registration and voter activity (as well as answering candidate robocalls).  This first step in our analysis focuses on registered voters.  We will discuss voting patterns, likely voters and turnout in a later post.

Continue reading Republican Primary Voters: Where to find them

5 Minutes with … Bill de Blasio



In our 5 Minutes With … feature we spend 5 interesting minutes with leading elected officials and policy leaders.  In this “5 Minutes With …” segment we speak with New York City Public Advocate Bill de Blasio.

Join us as we discuss the structure and role of the Public Advocate’s office and look ahead to January 2014 and the challenges that the next Public Advocate will face.

Be sure to also watch our report on the first candidate forum in the 2013 Public Advocate race.

Republican Primary Rundown: The @Jcats2013 Edition



The Republican mayoral race has burst into public view, with at least seven candidates and hope-to-be candidates.   My prediction?  It’s Catsimatidis and Lhota, with the wildcard of A.R. Bernard.  Here’s a quick rundown on the Republican primary field:

1.  John Catsimatidis:  Which recent Republican nominee will he most resemble?  A schlubby version of Michael Bloomberg, a self-made, self-financing successful businessman and effective CEO focused on serious campaign issues and governing, albeit with a thick New York accent, $100 suits and a messy haircut?  Or the New York City version of the Carl Paladino Clown Show?

Continue reading Republican Primary Rundown: The @Jcats2013 Edition

Mayoral Mashup: The Mayoral Forum Edition



In our Mayoral Mashup, we talk with political and policy leaders about what they see as the most important issue facing New York City’s next mayor.

On January 24th, the New York Daily News and Metro IAF hosted a mayoral candidate forum, with Errol Louis moderating the six-candidate discussion.  We conducted our own Mayoral Mashup with audience members after the forum, in which we asked one simple question:  What do you see as the most important issue that our next mayor will face upon taking office?  Watch to find out what they had to say.

“Outer” Boroughs No More: May the Major Boroughs Prevail



 

Let us shed the term “outer boroughs” and enable the Major Boroughs to proclaim their rightful dominance in city politics.

“Outer Boroughs” has long been used as a shorthand reference to everything non-Manhattan.  Implicit in the moniker is their lesser status, away from the true center of all things worthy, and dependent on the “inner” borough for support.  Like workers in the field, they are expected to wait for beneficence to be sent out from inside the castle wall.

The four “outer” Boroughs are, however, anything but.  They are the majority in number, the majority in population, the majority in land area, the majority in the number of elected representatives, the majority in, well, just about everything.  In short, as the majority in everything except media company headquarters and hot air, they are truly the Major Boroughs.

Continue reading “Outer” Boroughs No More: May the Major Boroughs Prevail