Fernando Ferrer | The New York Observer

Thompson Gives a 'Major' Speech on Term Limits; Ferrer Calls Bloomberg 'Sleazy'

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 12:22:25 -0400

In an auditorium at Hunter College last night, in front of a few hundred supporters waving "Eight is Enough" signs, Bill Thompson delivered what his campaign was billing as a Major Speech on Term Limits.

But the event felt more like a rally than a Major Speech. Before Mr. Thompson appeared, a surrogate prepped the crowd with some lukewarm chants of "Eight is enough!" and a call-and-response that went "Respect! Democracy!"

When comptroller nominee John Liu...

Poll Bloomberg Third Term Supported Across Party Lines

Fri, 03 Oct 2008 08:45:59 -0400

A majority of Democrats, Republicans and independent voters support changing the term-limits law so Michael Bloomberg can run for reelection, according to a Quinnipiac poll out today.

But Bloomberg's plan isn't universally popular; there's a notable split of opinion along racial lines. According to the poll, “Whites back the idea 64-31, while black voters are opposed 54-42." Hispanic voters support changing the law, 51-47.

Bill Thompson, who is African-American, was considered one the leading...

Ferrer Endorses Addabbo

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 15:51:56 -0400

Fernando Ferrer announced today he will endorse Joe Addabbo in the Democratic State Senate primary in Queens.

Addabbo, a term-limited City Councilman, is facing Albert Baldeo, who almost beat Republican incumbent Serf Maltese in 2006.

Democrats are paying a lot of attention to this race because it could affect the balance of power in Albany, where Senate Republicans are hanging onto a slim two-seat majority.

When Michael Bloomberg made a flurry of legislative endorsements last...

Ruben Diaz Remembers When Other Democrats Supported Republicans

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 12:49:57 -0400

Democratic State Senator Ruben Diaz, Sr.--who is running for re-election on both the Republican ticket and the Democratic one--wants to clear the air about a few things.

He called to say that his August 13 fund-raiser features Democratic State Senate Leader Malcolm Smith and conference co-chair Jeff Klein, but they are not behind the event.

“They are not organizing it,” Diaz told me. “They never organized nothing for me.” Diaz said his...

Another Willets Point Rally As Ferrer Joins Anti-Bloomberg Crowd [UPDATED]

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 11:39:11 -0400

The city hasn't heard much out of former mayoral candidate Fernando Ferrer since he lost his bid against Mayor Bloomberg in 2005. Now, the former Bronx Borough President has joined the camp of landowners and critics who oppose the Bloomberg administration's plans for Willets Point, the 61-acre industrial site by Shea Stadium.

According to a release from the Willets Point Industry and Realty Association, Mr. Ferrer will join local Councilman Hiram Monserrate...

Ferrer Returns to Oppose Bloomberg on Willets Point

Wed, 09 Jul 2008 10:56:59 -0400

Fernando Ferrer, the 2005 Democratic mayoral candidate, will join Hiram Monserrate in opposing Michael Bloomberg's plan to redevelop Willets Points.

Ferrer has been pretty quiet since losing to Bloomberg nearly three years ago. Monserrate's opposition to the administration's Willets Point plan could result in another defeat for the mayor on a development issue.

From the press advisory:

East Elmhurst, NY – On Thursday, July 10, at 10:00am, Council Member Hiram Monserrate will join with Fernando...

Recchia Has Global Strategy Group for Fossella Race

Tue, 06 May 2008 10:30:43 -0400

Councilman Domenic Recchia has kept a low profile since the congressman he is trying to unseat, Vito Fossella, got arrested for driving drunk.

But when political consultant Jefrey Pollock prefaced remarks about Fossella on NY1 last night by saying he’s working for Recchia’s campaign, that was news.

Pollock is president of Global Strategy Group, a company with clients that have included John Edwards, Freddy Ferrer, Eliot Spitzer and Cory Booker.

Recchia...

On Congestion Pricing, Fidler Echoes Ferrer's 'Two New Yorks'

Fri, 28 Mar 2008 09:00:49 -0400

Lew Fidler, a vocal critic of congestion pricing, spoke Wednesday night at the Stonewall Democratic Club in Manhattan, putting his objections to the plan in context with language borrowed from 2005 mayoral candidate Freddy Ferrer, who used to say during the campaign that New York was becoming two cities.

Fidler told Stonewall, “There is no doubt in my mind that the congestion pricing proposal, once you get past all the laudable goals that...

Foster Challenges 'Polarizing' Hispanic Machine in the Bronx

Wed, 20 Feb 2008 14:38:23 -0500

Helen Foster, who is contemplating a run for Bronx Borough President, said the last two people who have held that job have divided the borough’s black and Puerto Rican communities.

A story in the Riverdale Review (still not online!) this week quoted Foster’s father, the former Councilman in the area, at a February 7 meeting saying, “The last two borough presidents we've had were not and are not sympathetic to the black community.”

Weprin Welcomes Carrion to Comptroller's Race

Fri, 14 Dec 2007 10:35:58 -0500

Adolfo Carrion's fellow comptroller candidate, David Weprin, welcomed Carrion to the race yesterday by way of some remarks on his own qualifications:

“I still stand on my financial credentials, and in the end, I think that‘ll be very significant," he told me. "I served as Deputy Superintendent of Banks under Cuomo. I was in senior positions in municipal finance on Wall Street. I chaired the Security Industry Association’s New York district. And I’ve been...

Anthony Weiner and the Carrion Effect

Thu, 13 Dec 2007 16:40:37 -0500

A reader pointed out that Adolfo Carrion’s absence from the mayor's race alters the landscape for Anthony Weiner's candidacy.

In the Democratic primary, a candidate must get 40 percent of the vote to win the nomination and prevent a run-off. Without Carrion in the race, it’s more likely that Bill Thompson, the only black candidate, will earn at least that number.

Assuming that if Carrion...

Reactions to Carrion for Comptroller: Ferrer, Thompson, Katz, Etc.

Thu, 13 Dec 2007 11:40:46 -0500

Some reactions from the 2009 circuit to Adolfo Carrion’s entry into the comptroller’s race:

Fernando Ferrer, the most recent Hispanic candidate to run for mayor, told me via cell phone, “Well look, I think that he’s staked out for himself a race where he’s going to be a dominant figure.”

Asked if he was disappointed that Carrion would not be seeking the mayor's office, Ferrer replied, “I’ve just...

Ferrer Rumors

Wed, 15 Nov 2006 09:44:34 -0500

The rumor that Eliot Spitzer has approached Freddy Ferrer about an appointment as Secretary of State has been making the rounds for weeks now. We first heard about it on Oct 25th, and when I asked Ferrer in an email, he wrote back that day with a clear cut "no." On the 29th, the New York Post ran a story suggesting otherwise. Ferrer wrote me to deny the story. "With respect to today's...

Spitzer's 'Hi' and 'Bye'

Mon, 13 Nov 2006 07:37:28 -0500

Aside from providing a revealing look at the governor elect, this year's Somos el Futuro conference in Puerto Rico offered a glimpse into the psyche of the state'a Hispanic Democrats, who, unlike the attendees at the same event in 2005, are in the mood to celebrate. "It wasn't the blood bath like it was last year because of what happened with Freddy Ferrer," said one person who was at the conference. "This year, there's not...

Voting on Faith

Wed, 01 Nov 2006 06:05:32 -0500

Echoing what he said on NY1 News last night, former mayoral candidate Freddy Ferrer told me yesterday that he's voting for Hevesi "with the full expectation that he will not serve as comptroller. That he'll be replaced." I asked him if that meant Hevesi will resign, or be removed by the state Senate. "I don't have any specific expectation in that area," Ferrer, who is now working lobbyists [fixed], told me. He declined to...

Carrion NYC

Thu, 28 Sep 2006 07:00:00 -0400

Azi got a hold of this two-minute video sent out by Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrion to supporters. Short of actually containing the words "Vote for Adolfo Carrion for Mayor in 2009," it's about as close as you can get to an election-year mayoral ad. Inspiring music. Claims of massive increases in investment (236 percent) and decreases in crime (18 percent) since he took over from Fernando Ferrer. And clips of him saying things like this:...

Parsons and the Poor

Mon, 18 Sep 2006 08:15:00 -0400

With Time Warner CEO Richard Parsons in City Hall right now to present a study on poverty in NYC with Mayor Bloomberg, it's worth noting that the study reads like a potential mayoral plan for Parsons, whose electability has been under discussion for some time now. While there are some similarities between Parsons and Bloomberg (CEOs, self-made, Republican), there is one noticeable difference: Parsons seems more comfortable talking about poverty, a subject that received little...

Ferrer Stands with Green, Fleetingly

Tue, 05 Sep 2006 11:32:59 -0400

Andrew Cuomo, Rep. Charlie Rangel and a few other Democrats may want Mark Green to drop out of the attorney general's race -- but not Freddy Ferrer. When Ferrer and Green stood together this afternoon in Queens to endorse Hiram Monserrate for state senate, Ferrer was asked about the attorney general's race. "I haven't made any endorsements in that race," is all Ferrer would say. Will Ferrer endorse in the AG race? "Eventually." Before the primary? To that,...

The Other Unity Event Today

Tue, 05 Sep 2006 09:00:00 -0400

Speaking of unity, Freddy Ferrer and Mark Green are about to make their second joint campaign appearance ever. Just hours after Andrew Cuomo held a "united for justice" rally with Charlie King, the presumably positive event is a boon for Green, who has come under increasing pressure to stop his "comparison campaign" against Cuomo. Ferrer and Green will be in Jackson Heights endorsing City Councilman Hiram Monserrate for state senate against incumbent John Sabini. Ferrer...

Elsewhere: Polls, Spinsters, Integrity, Ferrer

Mon, 28 Aug 2006 12:47:19 -0400

Political Arithmetik looks at poll numbers since British officials foiled the airline terror plot and finds not much has changed.

"In polls taken since the British terror plot against airlines, five of the seven polls have shown a reduced Democratic advantage...Interestingly, the post-plot polling does not show any evidence for an upturn in overall presidential...

Campaigning in Corona

Mon, 28 Aug 2006 10:17:13 -0400

When is crime a campaign issue? Maybe when campaign aides have to file police reports. "We don't have polling numbers, we have Compstat," said State Senator John Sabini of Jackson Heights after a third police report was filed by his campaign. On August 14, computers from Sabini's campaign office was stolen. On August 17, a 17-year-old girl campaigning for Sabini on 99th Street reported to police that a man approached her, made a lewd/threatening remark,...

The Next Bloomberg

Wed, 16 Aug 2006 09:55:31 -0400

Is Time Warner Chairman and CEO Richard Parsons, according to this item in New York Magazine. In the past, most of Parsons's political contributions in the City have gone to Democrats like Mark Green and Freddy Ferrer, and potential '09 challenger, Bill Thompson. There was one notable Republican who got a donation from Parsons: Rudy Giuliani. So, if this media mogul is anything like the one who ended up in City Hall, Parsons could run as...

Source: Rivera to Endorse Cuomo. Formally

Mon, 14 Aug 2006 12:07:38 -0400

Jose Rivera, right, with a friend at Bronx County Dinner. Below is the full text of the letter Assemblyman Jose Rivera sent to Mark Green, which starts with the subtle line :

"Clearly you have learned nothing from the divisive and negative race you ran in 2001 against Fernando Ferrer which cost the New York City Democrats the mayor's...

Politically Knotted, Boss Dennis Rivera May Endorse Nobody

Sun, 26 Mar 2006 19:00:00 -0500

Dennis Rivera, president of the city’s hospital workers’ union, controls the most powerful and sophisticated political operation in the city. This simple fact explains why the four Democratic Mayoral candidates have been wooing him for months in a frenzied--and, at times, unsightly--effort to win his blessing. All this intrigue has created a dilemma for the 50-year-old Mr. Rivera, a self-made power broker, the son of a women’s underwear manufacturer who now commands 360,000 union...

Politically Knotted, Boss Dennis Rivera May Endorse Nobody

Sun, 26 Mar 2006 19:00:00 -0500

Silverstein’s Story

Mon, 13 Mar 2006 10:34:59 -0500

This week’s issue of Crain’s (subscription required) mentions that Larry Silverstein has hired Roberto Ramirez to “tell his side of the story on rebuilding at Ground Zero.” The item goes on to note that the Bronx politico “most recently advised Fernando Ferrer’s mayoral campaign”—failed mayoral campaign, one might say. Well, he better work fast. Tomorrow is the deadline for Silverstein to strike a deal that may have him giving up some of his rights to...

Cardwell to City Hall

Wed, 08 Mar 2006 10:28:27 -0500

Diane Cardwell, who covered the Ferrer campaign last cycle for the Times, has been named City Hall Bureau Chief. She succeeds Jim Rutenberg, who departs soon for the White House. Congrats and, in case you didn't get the memo: To: The Staff From: [Metro Editor] Joe Sexton Diane Cardwell's first byline in the paper a dozen years ago carried this headline: Rapwear. Soulwear. Hipwear. The story introduced a new and fresh voice to our pages, and it...

Freddy on the Times

Fri, 17 Feb 2006 05:56:30 -0500

Greg Sargent has a long interview with Freddy Ferrer up on the site of The American Prospect, in which Ferrer pushes his criticism of the press a bit further, noting pieces he found outrageous, particularly in the Times. The specific stories clearly still rankle: One he cites is a front-page New York Times piece headlined, "Clintons give Ferrer a hand while staying at arm's length." The piece, which reported that the Clintons were subtly distancing...

Gay, Swedish, Freddy

Thu, 19 Jan 2006 12:04:00 -0500

Over at Gawker, they've come across a Stockholm personal ad placed by Freddy Ferrer. The other Freddy...

Sharpton Dances And Madison Ave. Raids Campaigns

Sun, 08 Jan 2006 19:00:00 -0500

The business of politics has never been better for the people who make campaign advertisements. New campaign-finance regulations have opened new loopholes. A new breed of billionaire politician spends freely. And the Internet has opened a new avenue for politicians to gather the money that they continue to spend, for the most part, on television advertising. Political campaigns a rare bright spot in an industry—advertising—haunted by the rise of Google and the fading power...

Did Bigotry Alone Spell Ferrer's Doom?

Sun, 04 Dec 2005 19:00:00 -0500

The erudite professor of practical politics, Roberto Ramirez, wasn’t wrong when he told The New York Times that the late Mayoral candidacy of Fernando Ferrer may have paved the way for a more successful Latino candidate in the future. As the failed Presidential campaign of Al Smith begat John F. Kennedy, as Percy Sutton’s attempt to break the Mayoral color line begat David Dinkins, so might Mr. Ferrer’s defeat bequeath to New York its...

Did Bigotry Alone Spell Ferrer’s Doom?

Sun, 04 Dec 2005 19:00:00 -0500

The erudite professor of practical politics, Roberto Ramirez, wasn’t wrong when he told The New York Times that the late Mayoral candidacy of Fernando Ferrer may have paved the way for a more successful Latino candidate in the future. As the failed Presidential campaign of Al Smith begat John F. Kennedy, as Percy Sutton’s attempt to break the Mayoral color line begat David Dinkins, so might Mr. Ferrer’s defeat bequeath to New York its...

The Torch Is Passed, But Who’s Getting It?

Sun, 13 Nov 2005 19:00:00 -0500

With the formal demise of Fernando Ferrer’s Mayoral candidacy, an era comes to an end in New York politics. Gone from the municipal scene are the Board of Estimate Democrats—that is, those Democrats who came of age politically in, well, another political age. David Dinkins, Ruth Messinger, Mark Green (who’s actually not done yet) and Mr. Ferrer came to public notice back in the days when the Mayor, the City Council president (remember that...

Updated Exit Poll

Wed, 09 Nov 2005 04:15:59 -0500

Here's a somewhat updated version of the section of analysis of the Pace "telephone exit poll" I posted last night.

"Apparently, Fernando Ferrer's "lose with dignity" strategy paid dividends: he was spared the 30+ point defeat that several polls had predicted; he appears to have carried The Bronx (59% to 39%)1, Blacks (51% to 47%), and Latinos (62% to 36%). A majority of the electorate (53%) has a favorable impression of...

Early Analysis

Tue, 08 Nov 2005 21:16:40 -0500

Here's a snippet from Pace pollsters Jonathan Trichter's and Chris Paige's analysis of their "telephone exit poll" discussed earlier. A couple of people who do this stuff for a living have expressed their doubts about the methodology, which seems a reasonable subject for debate.

In the meantime, here's some of the key demographic analysis:

"Apparently, Fernando Ferrer's "lose with dignity" strategy paid dividends: he was spared the 30+ point defeat that several...

Self-Inflicted Wounds Doom Ferrer's Campaign

Sun, 06 Nov 2005 19:00:00 -0500

Fernando Ferrer sought to turn the contest for New York City Mayor into a brawl last weekend. Who could blame him?

Up until Sunday’s first public debate, nothing had gone right for Mr. Ferrer. His decision to throw some oratorical haymakers when he got the chance was almost inevitable. The tactic was not a total failure. Although some of his attacks seemed lumbering, there were enough sharp jibes at Mayor Michael Bloomberg...

Mike, Freddy: Two New Yorks, One Week to Go

Sun, 06 Nov 2005 19:00:00 -0500

Like Cambridge and Hollywood, New York is considered a hotbed of left-wing, blue-state ideology, the place where liberal Democrats come to think big thoughts and discuss big ideas. But it may be time to put away that hoary cliché. This year’s Mayoral election, like others in the recent past, has shown that New Yorkers prefer competence and results to ideology and partisan assertion. And if you’re Mayor Michael Bloomberg, this turn of events...

Evangelical Quandary

Fri, 04 Nov 2005 04:24:00 -0500

Unsurprisingly, Evangelical Christian conservatives are having a bit of a hard time figuring out whom to support this year. One who thinks about city politics quite a bit is Joe Mattera, a Sunset Park Minister who runs the City Action Coalition, and whom I profiled here. "The upcoming mayoral election in New York City has many in the Evangelical camp in a quandary because neither Mayor Bloomberg nor opponent Fernando Ferrer espouses the core moral ethos...

The Sacred and the Profane

Wed, 02 Nov 2005 17:05:00 -0500

Speaking a few minutes after Freddy at a raucous mixer of young people from the Republican Jewish Coalition and the National Jewish Democratic Council, Mike seemed awash in memories inspired by the disco beats playing in the church-come-club that played host to the event. "I just want to know one thing. How many of you remember when this was Limelight?" asked the Mayor. His eyes sparkled as he reminisced about the time "before the...

With Friends Like These

Wed, 02 Nov 2005 11:38:00 -0500

New York Press proudly announces itself as "the largest English-language paper to endorse Freddy" and promptly spoils it: "To ensure that we no longer have two New Yorks, but one grand city to rival Newark, we need Freddy...

Ramirez: 'I'm on Threshold Of My Lifelong Dream'