May 29, 2008
The GOP Nominated Who In NY-13?
In a surprising twist, the Staten Island GOP endorsed MTA Board Member/Weiss, Peck & Greer ex-Managing Dir. Frank Powers (R) to run for retiring Rep. Vito Fossella's (R-NY 13) seat. Powers' nomination wasn't expected at all, as his name didn't find itself on any potential candidate list that was floated in the weeks between Fossella's announcement and tonight's convo.
The endorsement, reported in the Staten Island Advance, came after one of the party's top choices for the seat, state Sen. Andrew Lanza (R), withdrew his name from consideration this p.m. Staten Island DA Daniel Donovan (R), who was favored by many in the GOP to run for the seat, pulled out last week. His announcement began an avalanche of GOPers who decided to pull the plug on potential bids, leaving the party to nominate Powers, a first time candidate.
Despite giving Pres. Bush 55% in '04, the CD gave Al Gore an 8% win in '00. So this will certainly be one of the races to watch in '08. One big question is whether Powers will self-fund (fully or partially) his bid. If so, that's a huge factor in whether he'll be successful, considering the huge expense of campaigning in the NYC media market. But if he chooses not to self fund, he should have a considerable fundraising base from his past connections in the financial services community.
Powers, assuming he doesn't face a 9/9 primary challenge, will face the winner of an expected primary between NYC Councilor Michael McMahon (D) and '06 nominee Stephen Harrison (D). The Staten Island Dems endorsed McMahon last p.m.
(TIM SAHD)
Posted at 10:43 PM
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