King seen as favorite in Council race

By Michael Horowitz

BRONX, NEW YORK, JUNE 5- With petitioning to be on the ballot in the Sept. 10 Democratic
Primary starting on Tuesday, City Councilman Andy King is widely
viewed as the overwhelming favorite to win reelection.

King, who was elected in November to fill an unexpired term left
vacant by the conviction of Larry Seabrook on corruption charges, is
considered the odds-on favorite to win a four-year term in office in
the fall.

King's district includes the Baychester, Edenwald, and Wakefield
areas, as well as Co-op City.

In the 12th Councilmanic District, which King has represented since
December, a victory in the Democratic Primary is tantamount to
election in November.

King, who has become a major participant in community events and
forums since assuming his current position, said, this week, that he
is proud of the fact that he has brought a new kind of “hands-on
representation” to the 12th Councilmanic District.

“One of the things I'm most proud of is the role we have played in
supporting the Nutritional Assistance Program, which feeds hungry
people through what we used to call food stamps,” King noted. “I
allocated $300,000 in the city's supplemental budget for this program,
which allowed more people to get the equivalent of food stamps. In
addition, we came up with $813,000 to save NAACP Day Care Center in
the Williamsbridge area.”

King added, “In a few short months, we've tackled a whole host of
issues relating to senior citizens, youths, and affordable housing. We
are helping to find jobs and housing for people, and we're helping
people deal with their status as immigrants. That's what constituent
service is all about --- helping people resolve the issues they
confront in their daily lives.”

King, who has the endorsement of the borough's regular Democratic
Party and major unions in his bid for reelection, is expecting
opposition from three challengers in the Sept. 10 Democratic Party
Primary.

The best-known of the candidates is Pamela Johnson, a civic activist
and community organizer who ran unsuccessfully against King, last
November, in a special election for the Council seat in the 12th
Councilmanic District.

Other candidates who have declared their intention to seek the Council
seat are Ryan Wright and Steve Ortiz.

In November of last year, Councilman King faced a considerably more
difficult contest in the battle to succeed Larry Seabrook as
Councilman for the 12th Councilmanic District, which includes the
Baychester, Edenwald, and Wakefield areas, in addition to Co-op City.
In last year's special election, King became the overwhelming favorite
to win after the Bronx County Democratic Party endorsed him. The most
serious challenger in that contest was Cheryl Simmons-Oliver, a
long-time aide to Rep. Jose Serrano who lives in Co-op City.

The Council seat was left vacant last year when Seabrook, who is now
serving a jail sentence, was convicted on federal corruption charges.