Needs 1,350 signatures to make it happen
Tuckahoe democrat Dr. Michael Gerald, Pastor at Shiloh Baptist Church in Tuckahoe and Deputy Commissioner at the Westchester County Department of Corrections is collecting signatures in the hopes of challenging Congressmember Jamaal Bowman in the democratic primary-16th district.
Gerald’s website, geraldforcongress.com reads, “Democrat Michael Gerald is running for Congress to finally give all of us the representation that we deserve in the House of Representatives. Michael is running to represent our shared Democratic values. That means working with, not against, President Biden and Democrats in the House and Senate. It means representing our values – the values of hardworking Bronx, Westchester and Putnam families and taxpayers – not the interests of the Socialist wing of the party. And it means having a Member of Congress who will put people over petty polarized politics and focus on the job at-hand.
“In Congress, Michael will: Protect our communities and families by working with, not against, law enforcement and fight once and for all for comprehensive gun control, including universal background checks.
Ensure every New Yorker has access to quality, affordable healthcare, reduce the cost of prescription medication and expand Social Security and Medicare.
Invest in our children by ensuring our schools have the resources they need to keep our kids healthy and safe, and provide federal funding for extracurricular, sports, music and arts programs.
Stand with, not against, our global allies, ensuring support for democracies around the world, including Israel.
Fight to restore the state and local tax deduction (SALT) and work toward making New York more affordable for middle-class and working families.
Build back better as we emerge from COVID and support small businesses, workers and caregivers with tax incentives and economic support. With your support, we will finally get the representation we deserve.”
In a story from the Jewish Insider, Gerald said that Bowman is a No Show in the district. ““Rather than the congressman focusing his attention on solving the issues of our district, he would rather turn his attention to making a national name for himself. He’s not getting anything done for us.”
Gerald, who served as a State Trooper and Sheriff in New Jersey said, “The fact of the matter is that we should never abandon our men and women in law enforcement. I really take issue with folks who indiscriminately say we ought to defund the police.”
“We’ve got a congressman who seems to be more concerned about his next interview on CNN.”
When asked about Bowman’s vote against the Israeli normalization act, Gerald said, “He’s pretty much saying ‘I don’t give a F about what you think’ to people who are constituents,” Gerald alleged, “and I think that’s disrespectful. But it also just shows you the brazenness of his group of congresspeople.”
Gerald also said in the story, which can be found at https://jewishinsider.com/2022/03/new-bowman-challenger-says-congressman-is-a-no-show-in-the-district/ that he met with Bowman at his request, apparently to try and get him not to run.
That didn’t work, and Gerald is running if he can collect the 1,350 signatures of democrats in the district to get on the ballot for a democratic primary in June. His website is geraldforcongress.com.
County Legislator Vedat Gashi is another democrat running against Rep. Bowman.
