Winners & Losers
This week’s biggest Winners & Losers
Who’s up and who’s down this week?
Don’t cry for Henry Wojtaszek, horse racing fans, the truth is he never left you. Some of the former Western Regional Off Track Betting CEO’s greatest hits were outlined in state comptroller reports that found that he spent more than $121,000 on sports and concert tickets in the role. Sounds like a fun guy! Now, despite those scandals, he’s back at OTB, this time as Niagara County’s board member. The Niagara County Legislature appointed Wojtaszek to the post this week, a year after he left OTB with a golden parachute.
Zohran Mamdani -
An incensed Jay Jacobs notwithstanding, Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani is on a roll this week as his base of supporters grew to include the three most powerful elected officials in Albany. Gov. Kathy Hochul and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie joined state Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins in backing their party’s nominee – a typically rote process that’s been more akin to pulling teeth where the Democratic socialist mayoral hopeful is concerned.
Bob Holden & Edita Birnkrant -
New Yorkers for Clean, Livable, and Safe Streets, led by Edita Birnkrant, and their City Council ally Bob Holden notched a victory when Mayor Eric Adams came out in support of a ban on horse-drawn carriages in Central Park. A couple of high-profile horse collapses and runaways led to this decision, the mayor said. He urged the City Council to pass Holden’s “Ryder’s Law” to end the tourist attraction.
Brent Davison -
Former State Police Commander Brent Davison is a few months of campaigning and a strong election night from joining the Assembly now that he has the GOP nomination for the 115th Assembly District’s special election. It was touch and go at first when Rep. Elise Stefanik said she preferred Malone Mayor Andrea Dumas, but Davison ended up swaying county chairs in the district and can even count on Stefanik's support going forward.
Eva Moskowitz -
Success Academy Charter Schools founder and CEO Eva Moskowitz gave her team a thorough dressing-down in the run-up to a key rally. She invoked the “existential threat” of a potential Zohran Mamdani administration while admonishing employees for failing to make enough phone calls to politicians to lobby for charter schools. In the secret recording, she makes the organization’s chain of command very clear, reportedly leaving some staffers uncomfortable with her demands. The good news? Staffers got to wear “holey jeans” at the rally.
Marc Holliday -
Can’t win them all! SL Green CEO Marc Holliday was really bummed out when his proposal for a Caesar’s Palace Times Square casino was blocked by the local review committee. Green confronted the six community advisory council members, calling the rejection of his project “a despicable display of cowardice.” Holliday isn’t alone. A community advisory council also killed Silverstein’s “Avenir” casino proposed for the west side.
Alvin Bragg -
A state judge dismissed terrorism charges against CEO killer Luigi Mangione, citing lack of evidence. This was an embarrassment for the office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, which is handling the state prosecution of Mangione, who also faces federal charges and charges in Pennsylvania. Mangione still faces second-degree murder and weapons charges in New York.