We ought to know by the end of the month who the lawmakers in Albany will pick as the next state comptroller — and one possibility sets up a curious situation.
Should Assemb. Thomas DiNapoli (D-Great Neck) be awarded the powerful post, Gov. Eliot Spitzer would have two special elections to call for northwestern Nassau County. State Sen. Michael Balboni (R-East Williston) is leaving his post to be Spitzer’s homeland security czar.
Simultaneous special elections for Balboni’s Senate seat and in DiNapoli’s Assembly district — where he won 74 percent of the vote in November — has a chance of boosting the Democratic candidate in the Senate district, whoever it turns out to be.
“That would certainly be interesting,” Nassau Democratic chairman Jay Jacobs said. “But I don't know if it would change too dramatically the get-out-the-vote dynamic.”
Reid J. Epstein
Jacobs said candidates for the nomination include: Nassau Legislators Craig Johnson and Roger Corbin; Michelle Schimel, the North Hempstead clerk; Joseph Hand, the political neophyte who lost to Balboni in November; Rocco Iannarelli, the North Hempstead receiver of taxes; and Matthew Cuomo, nephew of the former governor and cousin of the new attorney general.
Comments (1)
Picking Balboni as Security czar was good; picking DiNapoli as State Comptroller would be very good; scheduling the special elections for their legislative seats on the same day would be brilliant for the Democrats!