Covering elections is a bit like covering the Super Bowl. There is a whole lot of build-up, starting with who will be running, petition filing, endorsement seeking and finally campaigning.
Inevitably the big day arrives. All the election planning is done and executed, and now all one can do is wait for the results.
Today I covered the Assembly race in the 51st district. Ten term incumbent Felix Ortiz faced a rare challenge and actually had to mount a campaign. Challenger Caesar Zuniga has said that last year’s upset win by newcomer Carlos Menchaca gave him the inspiration to run against Felix. He ran with Carlos’ help, and, I found out tonight, at least a few of Carlos’ team who helped him win last year.
My political day had to be interrupted by a couple things. First was the running of my other business. When I started the Star-Revue in 2010, I only spent about 3 days a month getting the paper ready for publication. A good amount of the writing and editing was done by outside people working from their home. That’s changed as I’ve become more involved with the writing and story choosing process, and now each day is divided into newspaper work, the mailing business (www.selectmail.com) and making sure that all the bills somehow get paid. It’s all a big jumble, but I get it all done one at a time.
Today my jobs included some newspaper distribution, checking in with a few sources (in person, not by email), having an early dinner with some out-of-town friends who came to BAM to see a Philip Glass show, and doing a little organizing around the office. Interspersed between it all was checking out some campaign activities, and then finally reporting from both the Ortiz and Zuniga camps. Oh, one more thing – actually going to the polls myself to vote.
My attempt at checking out the campaign activities of the candidates during the day didn’t work out. I received a schedule of Zuniga’s last minute electioneering, which included trips to PS 15 and PS 27. However, those trips conflicted with the early dininer, so instead I opted to catch up with him in Sunset Park at 3 pm. Unfortunately, the schedule wasn’t correct. I was supposed to go to 43rd Street and 4th Avenue to something called the Lutheran Senior Citizen Center.
I drove to that address. There was a school and a church, but no senior citizen center. I asked around and was told there were a couple around 45th Street. I found them, but nobody heard of Zuniga there, and anyway, I was told that no campaigning was allowed at these centers.
So instead I walked up the block to Felix Ortiz’s campaign storefront. He rented a corner store right across from Sunset Park. There were only a few people there, most of the volunteers were out poll watching, and I guess Felix was out campaigning. I did notice a gentleman who looked very familiar, sitting at a desk talking to someone. It kind of looked like Jesse Hamilton, who was running for State Senate to replace Eric Adams, now the Borough President. The seat had been vacant since January. I introduced myself, and in fact we had met earlier in campaign season. He debated his opponent, in Prospect Heights. That debate followed a 52nd AD debate, which I covered for the paper – I didn’t stay for the Senate debate since that district does not come into Red Hook.
Full disclosure – my mailing company had done his campaign mailings, which made me interested in that race. Hamilton was the long-time district leader, and Adams’ choice to succeed him. However, at the last minute his opponent, Rubain Dorancy, received endorsements from the mayor and from Carlos Menchaca. The rumor I heard was that his campaign had received donations from people associated with the Senate Democrats who teamed up with Republicans to prevent the Senate from having a rare Democratic majority. Some were afraid that Hamilton might derail the opportunity for Democratic majorities in the Senate. For some reason the Assembly has been fixed to be traditionally Democratic and the Senate Republican, something that smacks of undemocratic tendencies, but which is politely called politics.
Hamilton seemed like a nice, gentle person, and didn’t really seem to worried – even after I told him about the gossip I had heard. It didn’t much matter, as he took his race going away – despite Menchaca’s last minute work. In a way, his victory was similar to Jo Anne Simon’s win in the 52nd AD – as both were the chosen candidates of the people they succeeded.
So without anything more to do there, I took advantage of some coffee and a couple of donuts from a huge stack that was prepared for the campaign workers, and left to go vote and then have dinner.
We were planning to introduce our out-of-town friends to Sams, over on Court Street, but as usual I forgot they were closed Tuesday. But my friend spotted an Ethiopian restaurant a few doors down. She was very excited at this chance to eat with her hands, and so we all went there and got stuffed. We dropped them off at BAM, drove around looking to finish the meal with an ice cream, and then it was time to head back to Sunset Park.
I went back to the Ortiz headquarters, where I saw that most of the donuts were gone. That was ok because I couldn’t possibly eat anything else (at least I thought so then). A nice woman in a blue dress was there, who I eventually found out was Elba Ortiz – Felix’s wife. I have known Ortiz for a couple of years now, but I never asked if he was married and he never mentioned it. Turns out they have been married for 34 years, and she proudly told me that they had been boyfriend-girlfriend for ten year prior to their marriage. I did know that Felix had four children, since I did ask him about children once.
I looked around the office and there was neither a clock nor a television. I kind of was expecting a busy election night room with results poring in and coffee flowing (no cigarettes as in the old days). Instead, a calm Elba was writing down results from a few precincts as some volunteers trickled in with them. These early returns were very solid in Felix’s favor, and pretty soon he showed up. Elba went outside and they talked about something on the sidewalk for a while, and then came in – Felix looking both excited and a little pleased at what he was hearing from the polls.
As volunteers started returning from the polls more rapidly, Felix hugged and thanked them, and then it was time to head to Red Hook. He booked the front room of HomeTown BBQ and that’s were a whole bunch of them headed.
I walked down the block to 4th Avenue, where the Zuniga affair was taking place. I had met Ceasar before at what I thought was a small little restaurant called Zona Sur, just a block or so from Carlos Menchaca’s district office. I had gotten the idea that they often had breakfast together there. This was much before Menchaca’s endorsement and subsequent campaigning for Zuniga last week and this.
I walked in and saw Carlos, still wearing a business suit and tie, talking in the front. He walked me to the back and to the outside. That’s when I found out that Zona Sur was much bigger than I thought. Tables were filled with Zuniga supporters hoping for a victory party. I sat down at one of the front tables. It turned out that the man I sat next to was Sal Albanese. Albanese most recently was a long shot mayoral candidate, and represented Bay Ridge in the City Council back in the 1990’s. It was fun to finally meet him, and of course we talked all kinds of politics. Another man at the table turned out to be a supporter from New Jersey, where Zuniga is originally from.
Heather Chin from the Home Reporter joined us. She had a smartphone tuned into election results. She kept checking them for Sal and myself, and occasionally Carlos, who alternately sat with us and then stood to talk to campaign workers and others. I asked about Jo Ann Simon and Jesse Hamilton and Zephyr Teachout. They all won. Well, Zephyr didn’t win, but she spent a lot less per vote than Andrew did. His goal before anyone ever heard of a woman named Zephyr was to win 100% of the votes cast – making a case to the nation that he would be the best presidential candidate in 2016. This single minded mania of his has proven to be his downfall, and may even cut his second term short, if the Manhattan DA’s case ends up holding water.
We also found from the smart phone that Ortiz had won an easy victory. Zuniga conceded, and then graciously met his supporters. By now it was almost 10:30, time to get to Red Hook – where all good nights end – and to the Ortiz party at Hometown. I found out later from Heather that Carlos gave an enthusiastic speech talking about the great work that was done in the campaign, and so forth.
It turns out that it was a good thing that Carlos didn’t make the trip with me to Hometown. As I walked in, a jovial crowd consisting mostly of family and campaign volunteers, were, dare I say it here, making some good natured fun of Menchaca and his failed attempt to bring down the incumbent. Ortiz’s number one man, Mitu Maruf, was onstage leading a victory cheer. Tony Plana, the actor and educator and now Ortiz family friend next regaled the audience with some self-deprecating jokes – all in good fun. He said that this was his first experience at working for a political candidate, and recounted some of the good things he heard about Ortiz from constituents – such as the B 37 bus, and this pool table, and the linoleum floor at a senior center.
Standing with Plana were Felix’s three young grandchildren – one of whom then introduced his grandfather, to a great roar from the crowd. It had been a long day for all the campaign workers, and for Felix, as polls opened at 6 am, and they had all been working since then, and some before. Mitu told me he hadn’t slept at all the night before. Felix made a folksy speech, reminiscing a bit about his years in Albany but mostly thanking his family and friends and pledging to continue to work for the people who elected him. I wandered over to the buffet table, full of chicken and ribs and macaroni and cheese and coleslaw and corn bread. I stayed away from the open bar, but enjoyed the nice cold water as I’ve been mostly doing in my now mature years.
I said hello to Ian Marvy and Noel Kepler. Kepler, who is a part of the Red Hook Coalition, and is running the Red Hook Ready Day taking place Saturday, had volunteered with Felix. Lillie Marshall and Anthony Watson were there. A few Puerto Rican politicos were there, but again, it was mostly a family affair – Felix’s family and his volunteers – and they were there to celebrate.
So like all things – Primary 2014 came to an end, with victors Simon, Ortiz and Cuomo’s pyrrhic victory. Time to get back to the office, write it up, and now, finally, to bed, overfed, sleepy and happy at being able to be a part of all of this, in at least some small way.
