Petitioning Has Begun
By Dan Murphy
Petitioning to get on the ballot for state offices has begun and in Yonkers, there are a few surprises you may find when you get a knock on your door seeking your signature. The biggest surprise has County Legislator Virginia Perez collecting signatures to run for State Senate against incumbent Democratic State Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins.
Several Democrats we have spoken to in Yonkers, and on the county level, said they advised Perez against the challenge to Stewart-Cousins, who serves as the Senate Democratic Conference leader in Albany and will likely become the next majority leader and one of the most three powerful politicians in New York State.
“I told her that I think this will be the end of her political career,” said one county official. “When you take a shot at the king (or the queen), be sure you don’t miss. But she is ambitious and doesn’t take people’s advice.”
Perez is currently serving her fourth term on the County Board. She has won three narrow victories for election and re-election to the 17th District on the County Board, comprised of southwest Yonkers. All of Perez’ victories have been “against the establishment” of the Democratic Party in Yonkers and in Westchester County.
“I think part of her decision is that she’s tired of what she is doing, and she has convinced herself that she can do this,” said another Westchester Democrat. “But if Virginia wanted to mend fences in the Democratic Party, this move ends all of that.”
In 2012, Perez joined with one other Democrat and seven Republicans on the County Bboard to form a bipartisan majority. Together, that majority worked with then County Executive Rob Astorino to pass budgets and legislation, against the wishes of the splintered Democratic majority on the County Board.
Since her defection, Perez has been persona non grata in Democratic circles. Yet, Democrats have been unable to defeat her since she scored an upset victory over incumbent County Legislator Jose Alvarado in 2011. Since then, Perez has defeated the likes of Piedad Abreu, Nerissa Pena, Jose Roman and London Reyes, in 2013, 2015 and 2017.
Perez is up for re-election in 2019, and rumor has it that Democrats want to run City Councilwoman Corazon Pineda-Isaac against her. The two were once political allies, but now not so.
While Perez has had four successful elections in Yonkers, a primary challenge for state senator against an incumbent and powerful Democrat is another matter. “Virginia is well known in southwest Yonkers and most of the city,” said one Yonkers Democratic leader. “But the State Senate seat runs north into Greenburgh, where Andrea is well known and liked, and further north to Mt. Pleasant. I don’t think anybody knows Virginia up there.”
Perez’s challenge to Stewart-Cousins, if she can get the required 1,000 valid signatures – or double that number to be safe – means that any peace deal with Democrats will never happen. “Maybe Virginia knows they are coming after her next year, so she wants to strike back first,” said the same Yonkers Democrat. “That’s always been the way she operates politically. Tit for tat.”
One Yonkers Democratic supporter of Perez told us: “Virginia believes that Andrea has gotten a free pass for too long. Everyone is afraid to challenge her, despite the fact that she hasn’t delivered for Yonkers in Albany. Virginia knows this is a tough race, but she wants to give it a shot.”
Perez and her supporters are collecting signatures with Ivy Reeves, another renegade Democrat who has challenged party establishment Democrats, including Councilman Christopher Johnson (now a county legislator). Reeves is trying to get onto the ballot for the state Assembly seat in Yonkers left vacant by Shelley Mayer’s victory to become senator.
Five hundred valid signatures are required to get on the ballot for Assembly – or 1,000 to be safe. A total of four Assembly Democratic candidates have their names on petitions to appear on the ballot for a September primary for Assembly. Including Reeves, they are Nader Sayegh, Anthony Nicodemo and Vincent Marrone Sayegh has the Democratic Party’s endorsement and most of the district leaders behind his campaign.
