David Weprin vs. Bob Friedrich: Oh, Right, Special Election in Queens Today

By Roy Edroso Tue., Feb. 9 2010 at 10:58 AM

Categories: Elections, Featured

We almost forgot: there's a special election in the 24th Assembly District in Queens today. Heavily favored is David Weprin, the former councilmember who ran for the Democratic nomination for comptroller last year; this assembly seat was his brother Mark's before he took over Donald's seat on the council. Their old man held the seat previously, so running for it is a kind of family tradition.

Weprin's Republican opponent, Bob Friedrich, is a registered Democrat, and is often described as a "civic leader," which means he's never won anything, though he has served as "president of the board of Glen Oaks Village, New York City's largest garden-apartment cooperative development" for 15 years.

Friedrich's approach has been to deride Weprin as a tax and spend Democrat, so if he wins expect 1,000 stories about Tea Parties as a result. He also complains of a mailer Weprin put out saying Friedrich is against hate crimes legislation and featuring a swastika, which is a little rich on Weprin's part, especially considering Friedrich is Jewish.

For his part, Friedrich seems to have endeared himself to the Republican Party by switching from a pro- to an anti-gay-marriage position. But none of this matters, as approximately 75 voters are expected to turn out for this thing -- meaning, if you live in the district and really want to make a difference, you'll seldom have a better chance than today. Polls close at 9 p.m.

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