A Month Of Coming To Terms With Losses & Victories In Albany

Photo Credit: Marc Gronich

Assemblyman David Weprin enjoying himself at the Chinatown parade in Manhattan on Sunday, February 12, 2023.

The votes are all tallied from November’s election, and Republicans in New York did not fare as well as Democrats. In the 150-member Assembly, Republicans held their own at 47 seats. Their goal was for the GOP to exceed the 50-member mark. With a few seats flipping and seats of retirees staying in the same parties, there will be new faces on both sides of the aisle for a swearing-in before the January session begins. Republicans will likely complain they’re not treated fairly in budget allocations, and Democrats, who rule the roost in both houses, will thumb their noses and give no respect to the Republican conferences.

The Democrats have the pleasure of awarding plush committee chairperson assignments to veteran members, as many longtime Democrats moved on to retirement or other job prospects. One of the members who might see a boost in his stature is 68-year-old Assemblyman David Weprin (D – Hollis, Queens). Three Weprins have held the Queens seat for more than 50 years. David’s father, Saul, was Speaker of the Assembly. His brother, Mark, also served in the seat. Weprin was named co-president of the National Association of Jewish Legislators in January 2017. He has a vast background in banking and finance and could be a perfect fit to be the chairman of the powerful 34-member Assembly Ways and Means Committee.

Weprin currently serves as the chairman of the Assembly Insurance Committee and is a member of several committees, including Ways and Means, Banks, Codes, and Judiciary. He has a close relationship with Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie. As opportunities happen in Albany, it is not always the most qualified who receive the big rewards. The list of new committee chair assignments is due to be made public in early January.

Governor Kathy Hochul has been touring the state, crowing about $300 rebates New York residents will receive in the fall of 2025. As much as she can, Hochul is also avoiding questions about her low poll numbers. At least one Democrat, U.S. Congressman Ritchie Torres (D – South Bronx), has said he is committed to a primary with Hochul in 2026. The 36-year-old Torres is an openly gay Hispanic. He is one of a small minority of members of Congress who do not hold a college degree. He served for six years in the New York City Council before being elected to Congress in 2020, winning a five-way primary. There are certainly others who want to seize on Hochul’s vulnerabilities and could join the primary battle. Meanwhile, Hochul went food shopping to demonstrate what everyone already knows – food prices have skyrocketed. Observers say she probably wanted to show that she knows what everyone else has been complaining about for several months.

The budget season is fast approaching and lawmakers are getting a jump on the complicated process by holding hearings to listen to industry experts complain about what needs to be accomplished in the budget for their particular sector. The hearings will continue through December.

After the dust settled from the election, the New York delegation in Washington had two additional Democrats. Two freshmen Republican incumbents, Anthony D’Esposito and Marc Molinaro, lost their races to Laura Gillen, 55 (D – Hempstead, Nassau County) and Josh Riley, 43 (D – Ithaca, Tompkins County), respectively. Both incumbents gave spirited campaigns but could not overcome being outspent and better organized than their opponents. Other issues came into play as well, causing the ouster of the two incumbents. Other Republicans across the state also gave spirited campaigns but came up short in the end. The outcome in the race to fill the open Matt Gaetz seat in Florida could determine if Republicans can hold on to the House of Representatives.

The breakdown of Jewish lawmakers coming into the state legislature next year: 25 members in the Assembly – six Orthodox members, 21 Democrats and four Republicans.

In case you are looking for a Jewish legislator when you visit Albany and need some kosher food or just to chat, the members to track down are:  Sam Berger (D – Flushing, Queens); Ari Brown (R – Cedarhurst, Nassau County); Simcha Eichenstein (D – Boro Park, Brooklyn); David Weprin (D – Hollis, Queens); and two newly-minted Assemblymen-elect Kalman Yeger (D – Midwood, Brooklyn) and Aron Wieder (D – Spring Valley, Rockland County). These Orthodox members always keep kosher food in their office and are happy to share. The other Jewish members either don’t observe, are Reform or Conservative. They include:  Didi Barrett (D – Hudson, Columbia County); Scott Bendett (R – Crooked Lake, Rensselaer County); Jake Blumencranz (R – Oyster Bay, Nassau County); Alec Brook-Krasny (R – Seagate, Brooklyn); Jeffrey Dinowitz (D – Riverdale, Bronx); Harvey Epstein (D – East Village, Manhattan); Deborah Glick (D – Greenwich Village, Manhattan); Jonathan Jacobson (D – Newburgh, Orange County); Anna Kelles (D – Ithaca, Tompkins County); Newly-minted Assemblyman-elect Micah Lasher (D – Upper West Side); Charles Lavine (D – Glen Cove, Nassau County); Dana Levenberg (D – Ossining, Westchester County); Michael Novakhov (D – Manhattan Beach, Brooklyn); Amy Paulin (D – Scarsdale, Westchester County); Stacey Pheffer Amato (D – Rockaway Beach, Queens); Linda Rosenthal (D – Upper West Side, Manhattan); Nily Rozic (D – Fresh Meadows, Queens); Phil Steck (D – Colonie, Albany County); Steve Stern (D – Dix Hills, Suffolk County). There are more Jewish Republicans now than ever before. This is the largest number of Jewish members recorded in the Assembly.

In the Senate, there are five Jewish members and one of those is Orthodox, Simcha Felder (D – Midwood, Brooklyn). The other four include: Brad Hoylman-Sigal (D – Greenwich Village, Manhattan);

Liz Krueger (D – Upper East Side, Manhattan); Shelley Mayer (D – Yonkers, Westchester County) and Toby Ann Stavisky (D – Whitestone, Queens).

There is a New York Chapter of the National Association of Jewish Legislators, Lavine serves as President. He is also a member of its national board of directors. Weprin was also named co-President of the National Association of Jewish Legislators in January 2017.

There are four state lawmakers looking to bolt from Albany to elected leadership positions in New York City government. Those include Assemblywoman Jenifer Rajkumar (D – Woodhaven, Queens) and Senator Kevin Parker (D – East Flatbush, Brooklyn), are mounting separate bids for New York City comptroller as Parker is simultaneous running for Brooklyn borough president; Senator Zellnor Myrie (D – Crown Heights) wants to take on New York City Mayor Eric Adams and Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal (D – Greenwich Village) has declared his run for Manhattan borough president.

There will be more finagling by state lawmakers and the Democrats coming up throughout December. The Governor delivers her State of the State message on Tuesday, January 14, 2025 at 1:00 p.m., in the Hart Theatre, The Egg in Albany. The speech outlines the Governor’s hopes, dreams and desires in broad strokes for the upcoming 62-day legislative session.

The typical reaction from state lawmakers is that was a nice speech, let’s see how she’s going to pay for it when she unveils her budget proposal in two weeks.

Stay tuned.