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When the apartment door opened in the sweltering hallway, it was a little uncomfortable for Alicia Torres who had just knocked. A 20-something man with a scruffy goatee had answered the door – wearing an only somewhat-concealing pair of boxer shorts.
Clipboard in hand, Torres pressed on, and asked the man to sign a petition to get her candidate, Ariel Ferreira, onto the Democratic Primary ballot.
“I don’t know anything about him,” the man says, and begins to shut the door.
Ferreira stops the conversation he’s having with a reporter about his campaign for the 71st Assembly District and steps in to introduce himself before the door closes.
Ferreira only received one endorsement, from the Hamilton Heights Progressive Democratic Club, which formed this April because its members felt forgotten by or disappointed in their elected officials.
If he gets past the petitioning phase of the election process, Ferreira said he will be the first person to challenge incumbent Assembly Member Herman “Denny” Farrell in nearly two decades.
The last time that happened, in 1992, Ferreira was eight years old.
He needs 500 signatures to get on the ballot and has collected three times as many. But he keeps knocking on doors. The number of signatures a candidate gets shows their political heft – and helps insulate them against any legal challenges they might face as to the legitimacy of the signatures.
The 26-year-old Ferreira, who briefly held the title of legislative director for disgraced City Council Member Miguel Martinez, said the scandal, and Martinez’ admission that he’d stolen taxpayers dollars, led him to make a decision.
“Either I decide to stop serving the public, or I can step up to the plate,” said Ferreira, who has a political consultancy business. “We need to redefine what a public servant is.”
For four hours a day, using a walking list provided by the non-profit Grassroots.org, Ferreira has knocked on doors of voters near his W. 177th Street home. He has to convince them of two things: who their current Assembly member is and that they should lend their signatures to his campaign.
“A lot of people think that Adriano Espaillat is their Assembly member,” Ferreira said, not Farrell.
What he hears back from the voters who open the door, is that housing issues are on everyone’s minds.
“The main issue they’re fighting is tenant harassment,” Ferreira said.
He’s been shown 15-day eviction notices that accuse tenants of not paying their rent, even when the tenants he meets say they’ve sent in their rent payment faithfully. Quality of life issues, like noise or building issues, youth services and senior center closings are also very much on people’s minds.
Election news:
Realmuto to run for district court judge
Richard Realmuto, the surprise runner up in the 2009 District 10 City Council race behind Ydanis Rodriguez, is running again – this time for a Civil Court judgeship. Realmuto, a fiscal conservative and lawyer by trade, said he was asked to run by 72nd Assembly District candidate Nelson Denis.
There are 120 judges in the state system that serve for a term of 10 years. They sit on the Civil, Criminal and Family Courts, and can serve as acting state Supreme Court judges.
Denis calls for DOE to reimburse students
Denis and his controversial campaign truck protested at John F. Kennedy High School in Marble Hill on July 1 after news broke that teachers and administrators in the school raided an over $90,000 fund raised by students. Denis is calling on the Department of Education to return the money to the students.
“This was the students’ money,” Denis said in a statement. “They raised it selling cupcakes and asking for donations. But the teachers used it for retirement parties and fancy dinners.”
Vince Morgan launches video series on issues
Vince Morgan, a banker and candidate running against long-time Congressman Charles Rangel, has released a series of “rapid fire video pods” in which he speaks on issues relating to the 15th Congressional District.
"We're providing voters with a way to connect with Vince and hear where he stands on specific issues. The news report format is easy for people to digest. They can focus in on the issues that are most important to them. Hopefully, they'll pass these along to others who haven't yet had an opportunity to meet Vince in person,” Raymond O’Neal the Morgan campaign’s creative director and media producer, said in a statement.
Pods scheduled for release in coming weeks will focus on small business development, affordable housing, healthcare access and cultural development. Media will be informed when each of these pods go live.
Correction: Last week’s election watch left out one candidate for the 72nd Assembly seat. Gabriella Rosa is also running to replace Adriano Espaillat as Assembly member.
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