Vito Lopez’s Game of Musical Chairs

Assemblyman Vito J. Lopez

One of Assemblyman Vito Lopez‘s closest confidants, Christiana Fisher, his campaign treasurer, pleaded guilty on Thursday to lying to federal investigators. She won’t receive her sentence until April 2013, but Lopez is already planning his next political moves. He alerted supporters that his next term in the Assembly could be his last and privately told colleagues he was interested in running for City Council after Councilwoman Diana Reyna is term-limited out next year. If Lopez jumps into a council race, that could set off a musical chairs-like
switch of offices throughout North Brooklyn. State Sen. Martin Malave Dilan could jump into Lopez’s assembly seat, Councilman Erik Martin Dilan could run for his father’s state senate seat, and Assemblyman Rafael Espinal could jump into a neighboring council seat, according to a political source. And Reyna is said to be eyeing Lopez’s assembly seat, whether or not Lopez runs for re-election. The drama never stops.