Dr. Miriam Levitt-Flisser
George Latimer
By Dan Murphy
While most of the attention in Westchester County to the upcoming congressional elections on Nov. 5 have focused on the race between Congressman Mike Lawler and former Congressman Mondaire Jones (and rightfully so, the race in NY-17 will be one of only a handful that could determine which party has a majority in the House in 2025), we recently noticed both candidates for office in NY-16, Westchester’s other congressional seat, campaigning and meeting voters.
The current Congressman in NY-16, Rep. Jamaal Bowman will not be on the ballot in November. Bowman lost the democratic primary to County Executive George Latimer, in what was the most expensive, and nasty primary election in Westchester history.
Voters in the district were inundated with TV ads and mailers and needed a break after the late June primary. Now, two months later, voters are starting to notice Latimer is out campaigning again, visiting the Metro North Train Stations in the district.
Latimer is one of the hardest working campaigners, so plan on seeing him in a Westchester neighborhood near you soon. But not much is known about Latimer’s opponent in November. Her name is Dr. Miriam Levitt Flisser. Flisser ran for this same seat in Congress two years ago, losing to Bowman by a 64%-36% margin.
Now two year later, her opponent is different, but what else has changed? And how will a Presidential election between Harris and Trump affect the results?
Dr. Levitt-Flisser submitted the following Op-Ed. “By now, interested voters are aware that I am a former Mayor, Police Commissioner, Fire Commissioner, and Village Trustee of Scarsdale. You’ve heard the story of my family’s escape from Eastern Europe and our arrival in the USA on a Marine Troop Ship, after waiting for two years for clearance in a Displace Persons Camp in Germany.
“I’d like to highlight some special skills and experience I have gained by being a Medical Doctor in our County. I am a pediatrician, with my office in Bronxville, and I served as the Director of Pediatrics at Lawrence Hospital for over 15 years, as well as being elected the (first woman) President of the Medical Staff, both voluntary positions. I am also on the Voluntary Staff at Montefiore Hospital in the Bronx and am a voluntary faculty member at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. I’m a volunteer for FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency in our County.
“And I’m the current Medical Director of the Bronxville School District, (for which I have a special NYS license) as well as for schools in The Bronx. Besides my School Physician License, I have a NYS license for International Immunization.
“As Medical Director for Bronxville Schools, I was prepared for the pandemic, and we kept our schools open, with adequate isolation, equipment, cleaning procedures, and a certified laboratory licensed for testing. Even in the summers, when Bronxville provides Board of Cooperative Education Services to children with Special Needs from our County, we remained open to serve them.
“Medical issues are a crucial area for qualified government representatives. Fentanyl mortality exceeds 140,000 USA deaths. Migrants with criminal intent introduce illegal drug traffic, and the drug culture impels them to seek money from crime to support their habits.
“Unvaccinated, and undocumented migrants with unknown medical histories from the entire world bring risks of reviving diseases that have been eradicated in our area for decades, such as Paralytic Polio and Tuberculosis, and increase risks for blood borne diseases such as Hepatitis.
“There are over 300,000 migrant children whose locations are unknown to the official system. This exposes children (in the USA!) neglect, and to sexual abuse that leads to lifelong disability, and deeply hurts the heart of this working Pediatrician.
“We have too many lifelong career politicians in Washington, already. Please vote for Dr Miriam Levitt Flisser for Congress,”-end of Op-Ed.
Campaign filings show Latimer with $750,000 on hand; Levitt-Flisser has $21,000.
