Winners & Losers
This week’s biggest Winners & Losers
Who’s up and who’s down this week?
It’s been a long week for New Yorkers. Anyone trying to get in and out of New Jersey last weekend likely sat in traffic for several hours (but hey, NJ Transit and the transit workers union finally reached a deal!). Knicks fans sat on a continuous rollercoaster ride as they defeated the Boston Celtics to head to their first Eastern Conference Finals in 25 years … only for New York City Mayor Eric Adams to jinx them in Game 1 against the Indiana Pacers by prematurely co-naming numerous city streets in honor of the team. Also exhausted: Rep. Andrew Garbarino, who missed the biggest vote that this Congress has had thus far because he fell asleep. You know what else sounds exhausting? Using only an iPhone with a keyboard attachment to serve as first deputy mayor. Makes you wonder: Just how many phones does Randy Mastro have?
Sam Sutton -
An election victory is about as classic a win as you can get. This time, it’s nonprofit and community leader Sam Sutton who gets the honor after he succeeded in his bid to replace now-New York City Council Member Simcha Felder in the state Senate. And he really ran away with the race, even as Republicans hoped that could pick up the seat in the southern Brooklyn Orthodox Jewish neighborhood. Voters there may have backed Trump last year, but the GOP still can't crack the Dem control at the local level.
Meera Joshi -
It’ll certainly be easier to care for New York City’s dead residents than its living ones. That’s something Meera Joshi has to look forward to as she prepares to take over as the new president of Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn. The sprawling, beloved cemetery (and its peaceful, far less chaotic residents) is a far cry from Mayor Eric Adams’ administration, where she served as deputy mayor for operations until quitting in February over the mayor’s cooperation with President Donald Trump.
Mike Lawler, Elise Stefanik & Nick LaLota -
Missouri’s the Show Me State, but New York just showed them who’s the boss. Reps. Mike Lawler, Elise Stefanik, Nick LaLota and the rest of the SALT Caucus used their leverage to quadruple the SALT deduction to $40,000 in the “big, beautiful bill,” besting Missouri Rep. Jason Smith, the House’s chief taxwriter. Rep. Andrew Garbarino could have been a winner, too – but according to House Speaker Mike Johnson, he missed the vote to take a big, beautiful nap.
Andrew Cuomo -
Who wants federal investigators breathing down your neck? Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo does, at least if you believe the spin his campaign put out after the DOJ’s investigation into the leading mayoral candidate broke this week. “If Donald Trump doesn’t want Andrew Cuomo as mayor, you do,” a new ad proclaimed. As campaign logic goes, there are probably anti-Trump liberals to whom that argument would appeal. But with just five weeks to go until the Democratic primary, the investigation also gives his opponents even more ammo to paint him as potentially compromised and to remind voters of his shaky pandemic record.
Richard Dionisio -
Harrison Supervisor and Mayor Richard Dionisio saw an opportunity to get his beak wet – and he took it. Dionisio took several votes on a planned rezoning for an apartment complex before publicly disclosing that he owned part of the land under consideration. He purchased the land for $500,000 in 2012 and later flipped to the developer for a cool $2.9 million after the rezoning was approved. In the end, the developer pulled its plans to build the apartment tower, while the mayor walked away with millions.
Antonio Delgado -
Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado is losing what little responsibility he still had following his public split with Hochul. She removed him from his post as head of the Regional Economic Development Councils, with Secretary of State Walter Mosley stepping in to replace him. At this rate, Delgado could soon find himself in charge of nothing but pens and staplers as rumours swirl about his potential primary challenge against Hochul.