Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins has asked a senior lieutenant to block legislation that would give Hochul a way to begin her candidacy, a former lieutenant. Governor Brian Benjamin, from the June primary.
The powerful leader of the majority of the Senate resisted the idea of allowing Hochul to get rid of the albatross of ballots despite her constant appeals to the legislative leaders.
The stone wall from Democratic leader Stuart-Cousins included asking Senate Finance Committee Chair Liz Krueger (D-Manhattan) to abstain from introducing a bill in the Senate that was proposed by MP Amy Paulin (D-Scars). two weeks ago, Krueger told The Position.
“I do not know where my conference is about this,” Krueger said of the bill after a meeting of Democratic senators Wednesday on the proposal. “There are many different views on this.”
Krueger added that she has no immediate plans to submit the bill.
Hotsul had previously announced Brian Benjamin as its vice president before being charged. Mary Altaffer / AP
The continuing cold push from the legislature comes amid low numbers of elections for governor, and sources say it ran out of chips with party leaders when it pushed for changes to guarantor reform laws and $ 600 million in state taxpayer funding. for a new stadium for her. Homeland Buffalo Bills.
“There was a huge mistake on the pitch. “It looked like they had been handed it to them on a golden platter and then we just came back and I think it will continue to haunt her for a while,” said one Democratic of the Assembly.
Interviews with more than a dozen lawmakers suggest that Hochul is facing strong opposition from members of her party – especially in the Senate – as she continues to pressure legislative leaders to take action before the State Election Council finalizes the qualifying vote in early May.
“I’m really having a hard time changing things in the middle of the process, whatever that process is,” Stewart-Cousins said in an interview with WCNY on Wednesday.
Hotsul has asked lawmakers to help remove Benjamin from the ballot. Mary Altaffer / AP
A spokesman for Assembly President Carl Heastie did not respond to a request for comment.
Benjamin resigned weeks ago and suspended his full-time campaign following his arrest for allegedly participating in a bribery conspiracy while serving as a senator. The Harlem Democrat has pleaded not guilty to five counts of felony criminal mischief.
The removal of Benjamin – who became the preferred candidate for vice-governor in February – is particularly difficult at this point because of existing state law and his reported reluctance to leave the state, another way Democrats could oust him. expel from their candidacy.
Benjamin’s ouster will leave former city councilor Diana Reina and progressive activist Ana Maria Archila, who has received ratings from progressive lawmakers in recent weeks, as the only Democratic candidates on the June ballot for June.
Some members of Congress, such as Richard Gottfried (D-Manhattan), said Wednesday they support the governors’ push for a change in the state election law ahead of the June 28 qualifiers, but others say it rubs them in the wrong way – especially given consider a possible reversal by voters in November.
“It’s a clusterf-k,” said another Democratic in the Convention.
Benjamin resigned on April 12 after being arrested in a federal corruption probe. Seth Wenig / AP
Not a single Democrat in the Senate – out of a dozen or so – contacted by the Post – has voiced support for helping their own party’s governor remove the accused candidate from the ballot. A compromise proposal, which was tabled in both chambers in recent days, would remove Benjamin from the ballot but exclude a replacement candidate.
The Senate Democrats can focus more on political survival than on helping Hotsul, said political adviser Hank Seinkopf.
“They are not interested in helping the governor. “They are interested in retaining their majority,” he said. “They do not care about anything else; the governor is alone.”
Resistance to Hochul extends to even some of its biggest allies in the Legislature.
“We’re talking as a conference,” said State Sen. Tim Kennedy (D-Buffalo) when asked about his position – a line he reiterated when asked for his personal opinion on the matter.
Majority leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes (D-Buffalo) – the most powerful Albany lawmaker since Hochul’s hometown – said he had to “think about it”.
Some potential supporters in the House say they are waiting for the official legislative language before deciding for sure where they are.
Benjamin is said to be reluctant to leave New York, which would be a way for the New York Democrats to change the ballot. Mike Segar / REUTERS
“I think voters would be shocked to learn that current New York State law requires a candidate to stay on the ballot even in situations like this,” Sen. Elijah Reichlin-Melnick said in a statement.
Hotsul told reporters Wednesday at a news conference in Manhattan that she did not believe she was “fighting anyone unnecessarily” in the budget process or after, despite continued criticism of her approach to lawmakers.
She added that she was ultimately more concerned about the views of the people than the Democratic lawmakers who hold their legislative agenda in their hands.
“I want to make sure the winners are the people of New York,” Hotsul said. “The day will come when these legislators… [are] I will want my support. I want their support. “And so we are launching a whole new day in the New York government.”
Additional reference by David Meyer
