13 professed candidates for public advocate appeared at a forum hosted by the Upper West Side’s Community Free Democrats Thursday night. Ify Ike, Council Members Ydanis Rodriguez, Jumaane Williams and Rafael Espinal, David Eisenbach, Assembly Members Michael Blake, Danny O’Donnell and Latrice Walker, Theo Chino, Nomiki Konst, Ben Yee, Dawn Smalls and former Council speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito had several minutes to address the audience and then field audience questions. Assembly Member Linda Rosenthal moderated the forum.
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The forum was hosted by the Community Free Democrats in conjunction with Ansonia Democrats, Broadway Democrats, Park River Independent Democrats, Manhattan Young Democrats, the Manhattan Policy Forum, Columbia Law Democrats, Northern Manhattan Democrats for Change and Hell’s Kitchen Democrats.
Current public advocate Letitia James is expected to resign on or before December 31st so that she can take office as the New York State Attorney General on January 1st, with a special election to fill the vacancy in mid-February. The City Charter provides that when James resigns the mayor is to, within three days, set the date for a special election. These prospective candidates will then have a short period to legally become candidates for the vacancy by petitioning their way on to the special election ballot.