Queens political stories to watch for in 2022
BY JULIA MORO
In 2021, many political races and
stories demanded extensive media
coverage. From former Gov. Andrew
Cuomo ending a decade-long run in
disgrace to historic local Queens races,
New Yorkers were never bored.
Now, as we look ahead to 2022, here
are some key political stories to keep
an eye on.
Congressional District 12 race
First, we have Rana Abdelhamid
running to represent New York’s 12th
Congressional District, which consists
of western Queens as well as sections
of east Manhattan and north Brooklyn.
Abdelhamid is a Democrat running
for incumbent U.S. Rep. Carolyn
Maloney’s seat.
Abdelhamid is focusing her platform
on recovery and relief as the COVID
19 pandemic continues to wreak
havoc on her community. Abdelhamid
is also a proponent of improving affordable
housing, investing in public
education and passing Green New
Deal.
Her progressive stances have garnered
the support of high-profile Democrats
such as Councilwoman Tiffany
Cabán, actress and former New York
gubernatorial candidate Cynthia Nixon,
and former Long Island City Councilman
Jimmy Van Bramer. She is
also backed by Justice Democrats, the
group that helped U.S Rep. Alexandria
Ocasio-Cortez and Jamaal Bowman
unseat their incumbent challengers.
Maloney, who’s occupied that seat
since 2013, also supports the Green
New Deal, as well as building up public
transportation.
Last summer, Maloney only narrowly
beat her primary challenger, activist
Suraj Patel, by 3,500 votes. Patel
told media back in March that he also
intends to run again.
A new era of women-led politics in the
City Council
Councilwoman Adrienne Adams
declared victory in the race for
speaker on Friday, Dec. 17, making
her the first Black woman to sit in
that position.
“Our coalition reflects the best of
our city,” Adams said. “We are ready
to come together to solve the enormous
challenges we face in order to not just
recover from COVID but to build a better,
fairer city that works for everyone.”
Adams will be leading a historymaking
women-led City Council. As
many as 31 women are sitting in City
Council seats in the 51-member body,
with many of them representing
Queens.
The group 21 in ’21, founded in 2017,
advocated on behalf of several candidates
to elect more women to seats on
the Council.
Some new members include Astoria
Democrat Cabán, Oakland Gardens
Democrat Linda Lee, Sunnyside Democrat
Julie Won and Howard Beach Republican
Joann Ariola.
Excluded Workers Fund
Queens officials are advocating
for additional funds to be invested in
the Excluded Workers Fund, which
has provided $2 billion to over 300,000
families.
State Senator Jessica Ramos, Queens
Borough President Donovan Richards
and activists called on Gov. Kathy Hochul
to invest an additional $3 billion
to the Excluded Workers Fund that
provides aid to people left out of government
programs like unemployment or
the stimulus packages during the ongoing
COVID-19 pandemic.
Considering the fund was drained
after only about four months of being
open to applications, activists are considering
the hundreds of thousands
of other families still in need of those
funds. Advocates estimated that around
50,000 applicants were left out since the
fund closed.
Most of these families excluded from
government aid are undocumented immigrants
that pay taxes and contribute
to the city’s economy.
What NYC officials will throw their
name in the hat for the governor race?
TIMESLEDGER | Q 6 NS.COM | JAN. 7 - JAN. 13, 2022
The New York state gubernatorial
race will be quite a show. The resignation
of Gov. Andrew Cuomo resulted in
almost an immediate rush of candidates
vying for the seat, currently held by Hochul.
While Hochul is running to be
elected for the position, so are a number
of other candidates.
New York City Public Advocate
Jumaane Williams declared his
candidacy in November, branding
himself as the party’s progressive
option. Williams, who describes
himself as a democratic socialist,
ran for lieutenant governor against
Hochul in 2018 but came up short by
about 6 percentage points.
De Blasio ends his eight-year mayoral
administration this year and filed
paperwork a month ago for his potential
gubernatorial run. But there may be a
few factors against de Blasio, who had
an unsuccessful bid for president in the
2020 Democratic primary.
Tom Suozzi, Democratic Congressman
who represents parts of northeast
Queens and Long Island, is also
running for the position. The former
mayor of Glen Cove and Nassau County
executive now describes himself as a
“commonsense Democrat” representing
parts of Queens and Long Island in
Congress.
On the Republican ticket so far, Andrew
Giuliani, son of former New York
City mayor Rudolph Giuliani, launched
his bid for governor. Giuliani is a former
professional golfer and worked as
a special assistant in President Donald
Trump’s White House.
Reform at Rikers Island
Queens elected officials have not
been quiet on this issue.
The plan, as of now, is to close Rikers
Correctional Center by 2027. Under this
plan, smaller jails would replace Rikers
in each borough except Staten Island—
construction on the Kew Gardens facility
has already begun. The plan as a
whole are controversial.
Councilman Robert Holden, among
other Queens leaders, stood outside the
Kew Gardens construction site to protest
borough-based jails in August, suggestting
to rebuild Rikers.
However, progressive Queens elected
officials disagree, calling Rikers a
humanitarian crisis that includes a
heated debate about solitary confinement.
U.S Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
has called on Hochul to immediately
close Rikers and release those detained
in September, when the death count at
the jail was at 11 (it is currently at 14).
De Blasio, however, said that idea was a
non-starter.
Eric Adams, the incoming mayor,
consistently supported closing Rikers
but recently started to walk back on
those sentiments. Particularly, Adams
brings up issues with the communitybased
jails and their functionality. Adams
could make changes to the scale
of these jails, but choosing new locations
would require another land use
approval process.
2022 PREVIEW
A first-ever woman majority is now leading the City Council, with many representing Queens and supported by 21 in ’21.
Photo courtesy of 21 in ’21
/NS.COM
