Election Update Cohen Vs. Oppenheimer
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Westchester voters are still wondering who will emerge as the victor for the State Senate seat for the 37th District. The count on the Westchester Board of Elections website remains at 40,527 for Oppenheimer versus 40,023 for Cohen, giving Suzi 50.31% of the vote to Bob’s 49.68%.
According to a recent email from the Cohen campaign, 10,000 votes are uncounted, which is “twice as many as any other Senate District in the state and more than most Congressional races. They also report “the emergency ballots, which are a third of the uncounted votes, are the first scheduled to be counted,” and that they “are due in court next week where the court will set the new schedule for the count.”
From Cohen’s email, it is not clear when this will be resolved. In order to understand more about why the results are so murky, Scarsdale10583 spoke to Milt Hoffman, who retired in 2001 as a senior editor of the Journal News after 50 years as a reporter, county and state government correspondent, politics columnist, editorial page editor.
He gave us the following observations on the vote, the new machines and the possible outcome.
First, the total votes shown in the race now stand at 80,550. According to Hoffman, “the 80,000 vote turnout estimate is low. Two years ago, Oppenheimer defeated Liz Feld by 78,862 to 42,036, and a total of 142,821 turned out to vote in the district. I wouldn't be surprised if the total turnout this year was over 100,000.”
Hoffman also noted that the new voting machines might have caused confusion among poll workers. Here are his comments:
“In the past, on election night, the inspectors read the results off the back of the election machine, line by line. This year, tapes recorded the vote. They give a total for the candidate from all the lines the candidate had. There is also a breakdown of how the candidate did on each party line. In one district, the results were taken by party; in another, they just jotted down the total for all the lines and didn't bother with the party vote.”
According to Hoffman, there were also problems contacting the Board of Elections. “I think there was confusion in calling in the votes, and the time it took. One person said she couldn't reach anybody at the Board of Elections by phone until 11 p.m. The lines were always busy. Inexperience with the new system held up the tallying on election night. The Board of Election called it quits that night when only about 80 percent of the districts had called in countywide.”
On the counting of the emergency ballots, Hoffman is confident that the Board of Elections will be accurate.
He says, “It is a slow process, but a sure one. Westchester's count of ballots always has been slow, because the Board traditionally makes painstaking efforts to count each ballot correctly. My guess is that the tallies have been finished, but that all the totaling has not been finished or is being checked twice and three times because of the new system. The fact that the Board seems to be late is a good thing; that means they take great care to be accurate.”
Furthermore, he added, “When it comes to some emergency ballots, they have to check that the person actually was registered in the district. Often there is a mistake at the Board and the voter's card is sent to the wrong district. The voter claims he or she is registered; the person is allowed to cast a ballot that is then placed in a separate box. When the box gets to the Board of Elections, the name on the outside of the sealed envelope is checked to determine whether or not the person was registered. If so, the outside envelope is discarded and the ballot in the inside envelope is placed in a separate box with other such ballots and opened without anyone knowing the name of the voter (keeping the ballot secret).”
Last, in Hoffman’s experience, the votes from the “paper ballots usually reflect the percentage of the machine count,” so he predicts the spread for Oppenheimer will hold up. However, no one can predict what will be found in the sealed envelopes.
Scarsdale10583 will continue to monitor the process and communicate developments to you.
Rita Golden to Chair Scarsdale Bowl Committee
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Rita Golden has been named Chair of the 2011 Scarsdale Bowl Committee. The appointment was announced by Jackie Irwin, President of the Scarsdale Foundation. As Bowl Committee Chair, Golden will head the nominating committee and the community celebration dinner to be held on Wednesday evening, April 6, 2011 at Lake Isle Country Club. The Scarsdale Bowl is awarded annually in the spring to a Scarsdale resident in recognition of his or her voluntary public service to the community. The Executive Secretary/Treasurer of the Scarsdale Bowl is Nancy Michaels.
When asked about her appointment, Golden said, “The Scarsdale Bowl is given each year to an outstanding individual who has generously donated his or her time and talent over many years to benefit our community. We have put together a wonderful committee this year to select the 2011 Bowl winner, and I look forward to working with them to plan an evening that will honor not only the recipient, but all volunteers who work so hard to make Scarsdale such a special place to live.”
Golden has been active in a range of community and volunteer organizations, including serving as President, Vice-President and Trustee on the Scarsdale Board of Education; PT Council President and Secretary; President of the Quaker Ridge PTA; President, Vice-President, and ongoing board member of the Westchester-Putnam School Boards Association; President of the Youth Employment Service, and Co-Chair of last year’s Scarsdale Schools 225th Anniversary. She has also served as a board member of the Scarsdale/Edgemont Family Counseling Service, Kids’ B.A.S.E., League of Women Voters, TVCC, Scarsdale Teen Center, Scarsdale Youth Advisory Council, Task Force on Drugs and Alcohol, Westchester County’s Women’s Advisory Board, and as a member of several Village and School advisory and nominating committees, as well as the Scarsdale Bowl Committee. Currently, Golden sits on the STEP board, and outside of Scarsdale, is the Vice-President of the Mount Pleasant Cottage School Board, a public school that serves students in residential treatment, and President of its foundation, and a member of the Lower Hudson Education Coalition Joint Policy Committee.
Golden is the marketing coordinator for Weill Cornell Medical College’s Department of Psychiatry at New York-Presbyterian Hospital. A 33-year resident of Scarsdale, she and her husband Steven have two daughters, Meredith and Alissa, both graduates of the Scarsdale schools.
The Scarsdale Bowl is administered by the Scarsdale Foundation which operates as a not-for-profit community foundation to promote the civic welfare. It does so by supporting institutions and individuals in a manner that encourages educational and human development in the community. The Foundation provides financial aid to college students entering their sophomore, junior and senior years. It also administers a number of special purpose funds, and makes grants for specific purposes which have included the Scarsdale Volunteer Ambulance Corps and the Scarsdale/Edgemont Family Counseling Service.
Post-Election Round-up
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As of Wednesday morning in the 37th District New York Senate race, Suzi Oppenheimer and Bob Cohen are in a dead heat. The Westchester County election results show each with a 50% share of the vote, with Oppenheimer leading with 33,272 votes over Cohen’s 33,092. This will likely be decided by a recount and absentee ballots. My quick and dirty analysis: Oppenheimer’s attacks on Cohen as a “slumlord” backfired. But at the same time — Democrats prevailed due to Cuomo at the top of the ticket against a Republican candidate most found patently objectionable on any level.
Cohen’s supporters met at the Crowne Plaza in White Plains on election night where the mood was hopeful but subdued. As the results came in, Cohen was maintaining a 2% lead over Oppenheimer, splitting the vote 51% to 49%. However the count narrowed overnight and now neither candidate can claim a victory. County Executive Rob Astorino came to the Crowne Plaza and predicted a win for
Incumbent Amy Paulin scored a big win over Republican challenger Rene Atayan for the 88th State Assembly seat. Results show 62% for Paulin of Scarsdale vs. 38% for Bronxville’s Atayan. Paulin
supporters gathered at Chat American Bistro on election night and the mood was happy and relaxed as Paulin maintained a strong lead all night.
Only an analysis of the data will show what really happened — but the lack of any viable Republicans at the top of the ticket — could be a factor that actually saves Oppenheimer from defeat — and clearly played a role in Scarsdale’s Harry Wilson’s defeat by Tom DiNapoli in the State Comptroller’s race. Wilson was quite successful in getting ticket splitters — but not enough to offset the onslaught of down-the-line Democrats.
Stay tuned.
David A. Singer is a former political consultant/campaign professional and political junkie currently toiling as a lawyer in Westchester and managing real estate and media investments.
A Big Week for the Greenburgh Police
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Greenburgh Police issued two press alerts this week: one concerning a suspicious envelope received at the New York Sports Club in Elmsford and another about a large drug bust in Dobbs Ferry.
On Tuesday, an employee of the New York Sports Club on Executive Boulevard in Elmsford opened an envelope that contained a white powder-like substance that irritated her skin.
Police, fire, EMS and Hazmat personnel were sent to the scene where they evacuated the club and had four club employees and a postal worker go through a decontamination process. The suspicious envelope was taken to the Westchester County Department of Laboratory Services for testing.
On November 4th, the Greenburgh Drug and Alcohol Task force, acting with the US Drug Enforcement Administration and the Westchester County District Attorney’s office executed a narcotics search warrant in Dobbs Ferry. The warrant was based on an eleven-month investigation of suspicious activity at 5 Gould Avenue in Dobbs Ferry.
On the premises, police found 100 pounds of marijuana, packaged for sale. In addition to the marijuana, which was valued at $300,000 they found $67,000 in cash.
Five defendants were taken into custody for possession, and one of the suspects was also found to be wanted by the New York City Police for kidnapping. All five were sent to Westchester County Jail where they will be held without bail until their court date on Thursday, November 18.
Car break-in at Seely Place School: A Chappaqua woman parked her Honda Odyssey at Seely Place while she watched a soccer game on the afternoon of 11/7. When she returned to her car, she found her car window smashed. Her pocketbook, which she had left in the car, was still there, but $300 was missing from her wallet.
Shoplifters: The loss prevention officer at Marshalls caught two women shoplifting at the store on November 1. He saw them conceal merchandise and when they left the store without paying, he stopped them and called the police. Judi Neil of the Bronx and Patricia Trinidad of Yonkers were booked and given court dates.Also at Marshalls on November 2, Jose Portorreal of the Bronx was caught switching price tags on merchandise and returning merchandise with switched tags in order to make a profit. The Greenburgh Police took him into custody.
A Best Buy employee was arrested on 11/1 when it came to light that he had issued himself an unauthorized gift card in the amount of $1,063.61 and used the gift card to make purchases at other Best Buy locations. The employee, Michael Guzman, age 20 of Mt. Vernon was arrested and taken to Greenburgh Police Headquarters.
On November 7, an employee of CVS on Central Avenue in Hartsdale reported that a black man, approximately 6 feet tall, came into the store, grabbed six Touchscreen MP3 players, each valued at $87.99, and ran out of the store. He fled in a small silver car driven by a woman. The store will check the videotape to see if they can see the suspect.
Disputes: Precious Jones of the Bronx got into a fight with a Bee Line bus driver when he overshot her stop on Central Avenue on November 6th. When she eventually got onto the bus, her metro card did not go through. As she was talking on the phone, the bus driver tapped Ms. Jones arm and she became verbally abusive to the driver. The woman was removed from the bus by a supervisor and the police took her to White Plains station to catch a train.
Missing Man: A Hartsdale woman reported that her husband was missing on 11/6. The 69 year-old man drove to Mohegan Sun Casino on Thursday 11/4 and when his wife had not heard back from him by Saturday she called the police. Police called the casino who found that the man’s car was parked in the valet parking lot at the casino, though the man was not registered at the hotel. They also checked the local hospital and there was no record of the man who suffers from early stage dementia. The Greenburgh Police entered the victim on the missing person registry.
On 11/5 Social Services workers followed up on a claim from a Barclay Road boy. He told his teacher at school that his father “got mad and struck him causing a bruise to his back” because he didn’t want to do his homework. Social Services found no signs that the boy was being mistreated or neglected.
Scarsdale Forum to Discuss Tax Revaluation
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The Scarsdale Forum (TVCCEF) cordially invites the public, free of charge, to its membership meeting on Thursday, November 18 in the Scott Room of the Scarsdale Library at 8 p.m. A welcome reception will begin at 7:30 p.m. Specials guests that evening will include members of the Scarsdale business and real estate community.
In response to a village-wide revaluation under consideration by the Village Board of Trustees, the Assessment Revaluation Committee of the Scarsdale Forum presents:
“The Pros and Cons of Village-wide Assessment Revaluation”, a panel discussion moderated by Robert Berg. Panelists include John Wolham, Director of the Southern Region of the New York Office of Real Property Tax Services; Mary Marvin, Mayor of Bronxville who is undertaking her third town-wide revaluation since 2007; Steve Altieri, the Town Administrator of Mamaroneck who is coordinating the town’s first revaluation in decades and Alfred Gatta, Village Manager of Scarsdale, who is also chair of a county-wide committee of assessors studying the issue.
The Scarsdale Forum is a 106 year old civic club dedicated to improving life in Scarsdale. The Forum studies issues before the Village and County governing boards and provides input to them via reports and recommendations. Scarsdale residents are encouraged to join and participate in the process.
For more information, visit www.ScarsdaleForum.com , call 914-723-2829 or e-mail office@scarsdaleforum.com .
