Buffalo News
Buffalo, NY
http://www.buffalonews.com/2010/05/25/1060880/state-democrats-hottest-race-likely.html
By Robert J. McCarthy
Andrew M. Cuomo’s nomination as the Democratic candidate for governor may gain the headlines at this week’s Democratic State Convention, but who succeeds him as attorney general is shaping up as the intraparty race with the real political sizzle.
Five Democrats already are maneuvering to gain the required 25 percent of the state committee vote needed to qualify for the September primary ballot when the party convenes today at the Rye Town Hilton Hotel in Westchester County. But it is almost certain that a bruising and expensive statewide primary contest for the state’s top legal post lies ahead.
And because the last two attorneys general — Cuomo and Eliot L. Spitzer, both of whom went on to run for governor — assumed vast powers over Wall Street and other entities, the race is gaining major attention.
Most political observers believe turnout will be low in the only expected statewide Democratic primary. As a result, they expect only the most liberal voters in New York City — where more than half the vote is expected to emanate — to prove the deciding factor.
Although former New York City Comptroller Elizabeth Holtzman is also mentioned as a potential candidate, here, in no particular order, is a rundown of the five attorney general candidates vying for the Democratic endorsement this week:
• Eric R. Dinallo: The state’s insurance superintendent under former Gov. Spitzer gained a major dose of momentum on May 1 when the Democratic Rural Caucus backed him in a non-binding straw poll while meeting in Niagara Falls. Dinallo won twice as many votes as his nearest challenger, but the real test comes this week at the state convention.
As superintendent, Dinallo claims to have protected policy holders at AIG, provided access to health insurance for 400,000 uninsured children, extended insurance benefits to same-sex couples, reformed New York’s workers’ compensation system, and helped solve claims related to the attack on the World Trade Center.
He is also a former assistant district attorney in Manhattan and a private sector lawyer.
In his first run for public office, Dinallo is demonstrating fundraising prowess with $1.8 million in his campaign treasury in January, when even fewer people recognized him as a candidate for attorney general.
He has been no stranger around Western New York, and scored enough points with leaders of small, upstate counties to gain their backing earlier this month.
•Kathleen M. Rice: The Nassau County district attorney is the only woman in the race, giving her a distinct advantage should New York Democrats cast their votes along gender lines. Indeed, she already made history as Nassau County’s first female district attorney when she defeated a 31-year Republican incumbent in 2005.
She claims efforts to ratchet up prosecution of drunken driving in her county, launched a number of high-profile drug investigations, instituted programs aimed to help veterans, and points to experience working as a prosecutor in Brooklyn and Philadelphia.
As just about every attorney general has historically put his own imprint on the office, Rice looks to focus on public corruption and Medicaid fraud.
Rice has also proven adept at raising money and at gaining endorsements, too. She is backed by both Democratic chairmen on Long Island as well as Brooklyn Democrats, providing her with a strong base.
And in a major plus, several sources report she is favored by Cuomo for the job.
•John P. “Sean” Coffey: A former federal prosecutor and naval aviator who graduated from Annapolis, Coffey has also proven a frequent campaigner in Western New York. Indeed, he spent part of his youth in Niagara Falls when his father worked on the Niagara Power project.
Now a Long Islander, Coffey says he specialized in making Wall Street more transparent as an assistant U. S. attorney, and looks to do the same as attorney general.
“Capital markets work best when that information is out in the open,” he said in a visit to The News, “and consumers can react to it. If someone lies, we will hold them accountable.”
• Richard L. Brodsky: One of the best-known members of the Assembly, the veteran Westchester County representative officially announced his candidacy Saturday just after Cuomo declared for governor.
On Monday, Brodsky emphasized his work on power authority reform and hydropower issues that frequently bring him to Buffalo and upstate. “I have a record on upstate issues — working on the Peace Bridge or cheap hydropower or reforming the Thruway Authority.
Brodsky joins the race with a considerable power base in the Assembly, including Western New York support from fellow Democrats like Sam Hoyt of Buffalo, Dennis H. Gabryszak of Cheektowaga, Mark J. F. Schroeder of Buffalo, Francine DelMonte of Lewiston, William
L. Parment of Chautauqua County and former Majority Leader Paul A. Tokasz of Cheektowaga. He also reports more than $1.2 million in his Assembly and attorney general campaign accounts.
•Eric T. Schneiderman: A veteran senator from Manhattan, Schneiderman is considered a major player in the contest since he is backed by several top Democrats from New York City including Reps. Jerrold Nadler, Jose Serrano and Charles B. Rangel, City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and Senate Democratic Conference Leader John Sampson.
He has union support from major labor organizations like Local 1199 SEIU, has collected political chits from Democrats across the state as head of the State Senate campaign committee, and has made contacts with progressive voters through his one-time role as state president of Citizen Action.
Altogether, he heads into the convention with considerable political clout after winning the endorsement of his hometown Manhattan Democrats and the 10 percent of the weighted vote they bring to Westchester. He also reported in January more than $1 million in his campaign account.
Schneiderman brings a long history to the race — former deputy sheriff, law clerk in federal court, lawyer for the New York Public Interest Research Group, and most recently, one of the most visible members of the Senate.
