From Forest Hills to Merrick, from Great Neck to Far Rockaway, the polls are open and the election of 2021 is underway. The unfortunate reality of our electoral process is that far fewer people will vote this year than last, even though the results of this election will have far more ramifications. Here is a primer on what offices are up for grabs and how they affect you.
The largest office is for Mayor of New York City, which pits heavy favorite Eric Adams against Republican Curtis Sliwa. As mayor of the largest city in the country, the victor of this election will wield a lot of power on how the city is run. Adams, while being more towards the center than current mayor Bill de Blasio, still suffers from the affliction most Democrats seem to have: They think they can control everything.
This became evident during last week’s debate between Sliwa and Adams. When asked about de Blasio’s controversial decision to mandate vaccinations for police officers and firefighters, a move that have led to a wave of resignations in other cities, Adams agreed with it. “I would follow the orders that are in place,” Adams said. Sliwa vowed to rescind that order.
This should be the number one issue for voters in the mayoral election. If the vaccine mandate is kept in effect, an already depleted police force may be cut by a third - this at a time where violent crime is rising by 20%. Grand larceny is up, murders are up, burglaries are up, and the police force is going down.
The New York City Council has many seats up for election, and the issues of crime and poor education will not be solved if Democrats retain a super majority. As recently reported, the Council is more concerned about removing a statue of Thomas Jefferson than they are getting the crime rate under control. The City Council has also been blowing out the budget every year, and according to the NYC Comptroller’s office, “the Budget and Financial Plan shows a budget deficit risk of $543 million in FY 2021 and larger gaps of $4.84 billion, $3.55 billion, and $3.59 billion in FY 2022 through FY 2024, respectively.” With the wealthy leaving the city for more tax-acceptable pastures, the progressive income tax will hit middle-class New Yorkers hard, unless they vote more fiscally responsible councilmembers.
Out in Nassau County, major leadership roles are on the ballot. The Nassau County Executive race is between incumbent Democrat Laura Curran and Republican challenger Bruce Blakeman. Curran is running on her leadership during COVID, while Bruce Blakeman is highlighting that Curran oversaw the disastrous property reassessment in Nassau that led to 65% of homeowners having a tax increase. Curran also vetoed a tax cut last year and is fighting with her legislature over her latest budget, which assumes that tens of millions of dollars will be collected from red light traffic fines. The legislature disagrees and is trying to prevent another deficit for the upcoming fiscal year.
The District Attorney race in Nassau County is an open race since Madeline Singas was elevated to the New York Court of Appeals. Democrat State Senator Todd Kaminsky is running against Republican Anne Donnelly. Donnelly is a 32-year veteran of the prosecutor’s office while Kaminsky is most well known for his role in writing New York’s disastrous No Cash Bail law. Kaminsky, like Congresswoman Kathleen Rice before him, seems to be using the DA office as a stepping stone to statewide or federal office. Donnelly on the other hand will continue to work in the same office she has worked in for over three decades, albeit in the leadership role.
There are also a number of ballot proposals up for a vote this year. The first ballot proposal is an amendment to how lines are redistricted in the states, and will include non-citizen residents in the redistricting. This proposal is a bid for Democrats to maintain a permanent majority in both legislative houses, a feat they only accomplished in 2019. They also want to limit how many State Senators New York has and create a commission that rules in their favor. Vote “No” to reject his proposal.
Ballot 2 is the invention of a new right, the “Right to Clean Air, Clean Water, and a Healthful Environment.” While this sounds nice, any “right” given by government comes with a catch: The government has the power to enforce that right. What will the government do to enforce this right, and how does the government define such things as a “healthful environment.”
Ballot 3 and 4 are both attempts to make our elections less secure so Democrats can game the system. Ballot 3 wants to create same-day voter registration and Ballot 4 wants no-excuse mail in ballots permanently. The problem with these proposals is that it takes voting away from voters and gives the power to the more organized and well-funded political operations. Instead of candidates trying to convince voters to come out and vote for them, all Parties will need to do is get dozens of volunteers to go door-to-door and collect the ballots. The more organized Party wins. That is not a Democratic process.
Ballot 5 seeks to “increase the New York City Civil Court’s jurisdiction by allowing it to hear and decide claims for up to $50,000 instead of the current jurisdictional limit of $25,000.” This is the only ballot proposal with wide support from both parties in Albany. The purpose is to decrease backlog in State courts and adjust for inflation. This quick primer barely scratches the surface of all the issues at stake in this election. Every voter should do as much research as they can, but everyone must go out and vote. Local elections such as these typically have low turnout, which means that every vote counts far more than it does when millions vote in the Presidential election. Go out and vote!
Moshe Hill is a political columnist and Senior Fellow at Amariah, an America First Zionist organization. Moshe has a weekly column in the Queens Jewish Link, and has been published in Daily Wire, CNS News, and other outlets. You can follow Moshe on his blog www.aHillwithaView.com, facebook.com/aHillwithaView, and twitter.com/HillWithView.
