« Owners 'Russian' to sell | Main | On Your To Way Vote, We Quizzically Ask: How “Green” Is Our Bloomberg? »
November 2, 2009
AY opponents James, Owens endorse AY supporter Vann in the 36th CD, neglect AY opponent Griffith
Atlantic Yards Report
It's not every day that we disagree with Tish James and Chris Owens, and agree with Errol Louis, but hey, it's election day eve.
In the race between incumbent 36th District Council Member Al Vann, who won an eight-person Democratic primary by a slim margin, and challenger Mark Winston Griffith, who came in second and is running on the Working Families Party line, you'd think 35th District Council Member Letitia James might endorse the challenger.
After all, Vann voted to overturn and extend term limits, while James was a fierce opponent of that effort. And Vann is a supporter of Atlantic Yards, attending the MetroTech tree-lighting last December, while James is the project's leading political opponent--and Griffith opposes the project.
You'd also think that Chris Owens, who ran for the 11th Congressional District in 2006 as the only candidate opposing Atlantic Yards, also might endorse Griffith.
But James and Owens are endorsing Vann, as the New York Times reports today. Along with their citation of his very long track record as a patriarch of black politics in Brooklyn, I'd have to suspect that mutual crusades and mutual favors go a long way. (James used to work for Vann. And Atlantic Yards is hardly the major issue in the district.)
NoLandGrab: Al Vann's vote in favor of overturning term limits, and his support for Atlantic Yards, automatically disqualify him; Mark Winston Griffith, despite having to run on the Working Families/ACORN line, has been outspoken about his opposition to Bruce Ratner's boondoggle.
Posted by eric at November 2, 2009 8:28 PM