This past Sunday afternoon, September 1, Republican Mayoral Candidate Curtis Sliwa delivered a powerful keynote address at the grand opening of the joint campaign office set to house Republican New York State Senate Candidate for District 11 Yiatin Chu, Republican New York State Assembly Candidate for District 25 Kenneth Paek, and Republican Candidate for Queens Surrogate Court Judge Stephen Weiner. The Oakland Gardens headquarters on Springfield Boulevard was standing room only as the candidates made their case to supporters.
Sliwa began his remarks with a stinging jab to incumbent Democrat Toby Ann Stavisky, “the state senator who is older than Joe Biden” as he spoke of conversations the hopeful candidates held to map out a path to victory. Sliwa was a driving force behind Paek’s June primary win and is optimistic about triumphing in November. Sliwa praised Paek, a Korean American who served both in the United States Navy and the NYPD. Sliwa then noted that if both Chu and Paek overcome their opponents, it would mark “the merging of the new minority that will soon one day be the majority.” Chinese Americans and Korean Americans like Weiner, a Jewish American, all share the same value system that has increasingly embraced an understanding found within the Republican Party that is representative of their cultures, notably with respect to quality of life and family-centric issues.
Sliwa explained that the three candidates found “a home away from home” in the great nation of the United States of America. Sliwa spoke of our country’s embrace of immigrant populations and added that “the Republican Party stands for legal immigration.” Sliwa made note of the great contributions from the Chinese American and Korean American communities in areas where Whites once dominated. These tax-paying immigrant regions have established businesses, bought purchases, and built vibrant families that move New York forward. Sliwa then offered a history lesson explaining that immigrant cultures are often pushed to believe in the Democratic Party’s sole party rule, a theory dating back to when the Irish first arrived in Lower Manhattan and when the doctrines of Tammany Hall were considered law. Sliwa left his colleagues with a promise: “I am going to work with you, bust my shoes, shake hands, go door to door, because the only path to victory is good-old-fashioned retail politics.”
Should Chu win the State Senate seat, she would break the veto-proof majority that exists in Albany forcing the Democrats to finally give the Republicans a fair seat at the table. Seven months ago, Chu, who immigrated to Whitestone in 1976, embarked on a grassroots campaign to run for New York State Senate.
“My values, often referred to as immigrant values, are American values, because all of us, whether first generation or fourth generation. came to this country for opportunities and a better life. We believe that if you do the right things, work hard, follow the law, and look out for your neighbors, we can achieve a good life.”
Chu expressed how this notion is at risk, as more and more New Yorkers feel “uneasy, unsafe, and unsure about what this city has become and what our elected officials are doing to us, instead of for us.” Chu blames the blue wave of 2018 that “ended a balanced state legislature where laws were negotiated and moderated.
Chu ripped into bail reform, which was co-sponsored by the 25-year term incumbent, saying that in Queens North, crime has skyrocketed 74%, with robberies up 70-150% and car thefts up a whopping 500-700% in the 109th and 111th precincts. Chu expressed anger at 218,000 migrants in our city, with 70,000 persistently rotating through our system of shelters and social services to the tune of $5 billion, plus another $2.4 billion recently allocated. Chu spoke out against congestion pricing, which will “hurt Eastern Queens,” and discussed a lack of safety within public transportation.
Additionally, Chu said, “We cannot give greedy developers a carte blanche to put apartment buildings in the middle of our one-family blocks. Our infrastructure and essential services are already stretched. We’re not even able to comply with the new class size law with our current families without busing kids to other districts.”
Chu believes a win is tangible, noting that Stefano Forte garnered 43 percent two years ago, and Vickie Paladino successfully won a City Council seat with 60 percent. “The 58-year Stavisky dynasty will use every advantage they have against us; our most powerful weapon is talking directly with voters. It’s a ground game, and every door and every conversation counts.”
Kenneth Paek retired at 47 as a New York City Police Sergeant, and he is now poised to take on the Queens political machine and break the gridlock on business as usual in New York City. Paek is challenging the decades-old career incumbent of New York State Assembly District 25 covering Flushing, Fresh Meadows, Bayside, Douglaston, Oakland Gardens, Queensboro Hill, and Hillcrest. “The working and law-abiding people are disgusted and fed up and they won’t take it anymore,” stated the Korean-born solid moderate. “I will bring a wealth of experience and knowledge to the Assembly seat.”
Paek is a graduate of John Jay College and served four years in the US Navy. As an officer, Paek served in the city’s 5th Precinct, later passed the highly selective process becoming an Emergency Service Officer and was a supervisor of a specialized team in the 109th Precinct dedicated to targeting violent felonies where he encountered criminals emboldened by weak laws that did not serve the public interest.
Stephen Weiner is a frum Sunnyside resident, where he serves as President of the local Young Israel. The National Council of Young Israel awarded him its Centennial Award for this work. Weiner is a proud lifelong New Yorker and practicing attorney of wills, estate planning, probate, trusts, and guardianships for over three decades. With his wife of 37 years, he has faithfully raised their developmentally disabled adult son.
Weiner’s experience in the Queens Surrogate’s Court began in the 1990s as the Court-appointed Guardian ad Litem to represent those without counsel. “I am committed to equal justice under the law, and to striving for excellence, integrity, and inspiration in the affairs of the Surrogate’s Court,” noted Weiner, who for the past decade has been rated in New York City as a “Super Lawyer” in Estate Planning and Probate.
Weiner graduated from the Bronx High School of Science, Yale College, and Columbia University School of Law where he founded its Federalist Society chapter and became a member of the Columbia Law Review. Weiner has trial experience in federal and state courts, as well as in arbitrations. Weiner has argued in the Court of Appeals, our state’s highest court, and argued in appellate courts at both the state and federal level.
Weiner was President of the Board of Elections and was the Queens Commissioner of Elections. Currently, the candidate is a member of the Historical Society of the New York Courts and the American Revolution Roundtable of New York. Since 2004, Weiner has been sworn in annually as a court examiner, an independent reviewer of guardianships.
By Shabsie Saphirstein
