Election 2010: What does this election mean?

4 Nov
By CURTIS R. SIMMONS

There is no way around it. Tuesday night was not a good night for either the Democrats or Black political empowerment.

While most elected African-Americans did not lose in races around the state or in the nation, decades of accumulated power were washed away in Washington D.C., and gains long fought for in Albany are also at risk as well.

Just two years ago, African-Americans of every political stripe celebrated the election of the first Black president, and analysts are saying that white voter anger over his ambitious agenda has resulted in an unprecedented backlash. In Washington, Democrats lost 60 seats—the largest loss of seats since Truman’s big losses in 1948. Continue reading →

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Deval Patrick becomes only Black governor in the country in Massachusetts

4 Nov
By AMITY PAYE, Special to the AmNews

David Paterson was only the fourth Black governor in the country, and as we watched New York’s gubernatorial races and prepared to say goodbye to the first Black governor of New York State, his counterpart, Duval Patrick, the first Black governor of Massachusetts, was fighting to maintain his position.

Patrick won 49 percent of the vote in Tuesday’s election, securing his position as governor of Massachusetts for another term. In winning the election, Patrick not only will now be the country’s only Black governor, but also the first Democrat to remain governor of Massachusetts since 1986.

But it wasn’t an easy win as he narrowly beat his Republican opponent, Charlie Baker, who got 42 percent of the vote. As the campaign season proceeded, Patrick’s initially large lead against Barker dwindled. Continue reading →

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Dems celebrate rousing win in Midtown

4 Nov
By CYRIL JOSH BARKER, Amsterdam News Staff

Celebration and jubilation filled the Sheraton Hotel and Towers in Midtown Manhattan as the Democratic Party managed to win several key races on Tuesday night. Supporters and power players filled the ballroom, hobnobbing while preparing for the next four years of strategy to get New York State in order.

Shortly after polls closed, Andrew Cuomo was named the projected winner of the governor’s race. Cuomo pounced his GOP and Tea Party darling opponent Carl Paladino, who set up shop with his own election night party across the street at the Hilton. In the end, Cuomo took 60 percent of the votes.

Tuesday night’s victory party also brought out several winners from the Democratic Party, including Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand and Chuck Schumer, who retained their seats, while Eric Schneiderman was elected state attorney general. Continue reading →

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Nicole Paultre Bell edged out by Ruben Wills for council seat

4 Nov
By STEPHON JOHNSON, Amsterdam News Staff

In a highly contested race, Nicole Paultre Bell, the widow of Sean Bell, lost her race for New York City Council to Ruben Wills.

With results not decided until the wee hours of the morning in District 28, Wills took home 31.17 percent of the vote (3,347 votes total) and Bell finished with 25.3 percent of the vote (2,721 votes total). Albert Baldeo, Allan Jennings, Charles Bilal, Harpeet Toor and Martha Butler finished second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth respectively.

Wills now takes over the seat left empty by Thomas White, who passed away this past August. Continue reading →

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Reminder: Elections are TODAY!

2 Nov

Elections will be held throughout the day today. Visit the Board of Elections Web site to find your poll site.

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Vote Nov 2: Our future depends on it

28 Oct
By NAYABA ARINDE
Amsterdam News Editor

Rev. Dr. Congressman Adam Clayton Powell once asked, “What’s in your hands?

Representation, referendums and rights.

Next Tuesday the nation can participate in the general election—and in theory choose the candidate who is best willing and able to satisfy the interest of the public good. It is, of course, all a matter of opinion and perspective, with hundreds of candidates, incumbents, propositions and side issues up for consideration.
Continue reading →

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NYT: Cuomo Vows Offensive Against Labor Unions

25 Oct

Andrew M. Cuomo will mount a presidential-style permanent political campaign to counter the well-financed labor unions he believes have bullied previous governors and lawmakers into making bad decisions. He will seek to transform the state’s weak business lobby into a more formidable ally, believing that corporate leaders in New York have virtually surrendered the field to big labor.

read the rest at: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/25/nyregion/25cuomo.html?ref=nyregion

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We need a Supreme apology

21 Oct
By ELINOR TATUM Publisher and Editor in Chief

Ginni Thomas, the Tea Party activist and wife of Supreme Court judge Clarence Thomas, had the nerve to call Anita Hill and ask her for an apology over the weekend.

For those of you who don’t remember, Anita Hill was the woman who accused then-Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas of sexual harassment in 1991. African Americans had to watch as two Black people were on national display during Supreme Court confirmation hearings in front of the Senate. Thomas, famously claimed during his testimony that he was the victim of a “high tech lynching” – and an all white senate body squirmed as they tried to decide who was telling the truth-the Black man or the Black woman. After the bitter hearings, Thomas was named to the Supreme Court with one of the lowest margins of approval by any justice with a 52–48 vote. Continue reading →

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MWBE bill is in effect; lobbyists and politicians explain significance

21 Oct
By STEPHON JOHNSON Amsterdam News Staff

“Because of the legislation we will sign today, that won’t happen on my watch or after my watch.” That’s what New York State Gov. David Paterson said in late July inside the Adam Clayton Powell State Office Building. “Today, we will sign legislation that will fundamentally change the way the state does business and with whom the state does business.”

Paterson was announcing and signing several pieces of legislation that would change the collective state of minority- and women-owned businesses (MWBE) in New York and give them a fair shot at receiving government contracts. Continue reading →

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Unions weigh in on midterm elections

21 Oct
By CYRIL JOSH BARKER Amsterdam News Staff

Representatives from several unions came together last week at the Manhattan Neighborhood Network before members of the ethnic press to discuss the unions’ stance on the upcoming midterm elections. Hector Figueroa, secretary treasurer for 32BJ; Odemola Oyefeso, political director for RWDSU; Leo Casey of the United Federation of Teachers; and Wanda Williams, political action director of DC37, all weighed in on the positions of their unions.

On the heels of the recent One Nation Working Together rally in Washington, D.C., earlier this month, which brought out hundreds of thousands of union members, panelists at the discussion emphasized the need to put words into action by heading to the polls and letting their voices be heard in November. Continue reading →

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