Sanders Campaign Says “Character” Matters After Huntley Arrest

From today’s Heard Around Town:

Sen. Shirley Huntley

* What impact state Sen. Shirley Huntley’s arrest yesterday has on her Democratic primary next month has yet to be seen, but the campaign of a challenger, New York City Councilman James Sanders, is betting that the news will sway voters. “I think any time there’s an election, character of the candidates is one of the main factors people weigh when they choose who they’re going to vote for,” said Steve Behar, Sanders’ campaign manager. “That’s going to be the impact in this race.” Behar said he saw no indication that Huntley would drop her re-election bid, and pledged that Sanders would continue to “vigorously campaign and not change anything we do based on the fact that Sen. Huntley has been indicted.” “It’s been a weird few weeks,” he added. “I’ve been working campaigns for almost a decade, and I’ve never been in a race where three weeks before an election the opponent gets arrested.” A spokeswoman for Huntley did not immediately return a request for comment.