| Happy Friday! Thanks to all of you who've taken our quick survey—it helps a lot, as we plan how best to deliver the political news you need for this election and beyond. If you haven't taken it yet, please do! It'll only take a few minutes. | | Given the surge of political activity after the 2016 election—and September's abnormally high primary turnout—polls will probably be crowded next Tuesday.
The New York City Board of Elections is expecting presidential year turnout numbers.
But WNYC reporters Yasmeen Khan and Shumita Basu, who've been covering voter excitement (or the lack thereof) all election season, went out this week to do their own final heat check on how people are feeling going into Election Day.
In East Harlem, where turnout is often low, resident Cookie Smith told us that many of her neighbors are still reluctant to vote.
"We need garbage cans on this corner," she explained. "Another thing we need are doggy stands with the bags." Elected officials, she argued, don't deliver on that stuff. So, her neighbors see less of an incentive to vote.
Down in Borough Park, Brooklyn, we encountered a different mood. This is a neighborhood with higher than average turnout numbers, and it's also one of the city's rare conservative enclaves.
A 27-year-old named Rachel told us that she's voting for Republican Marc Molinaro for governor, mainly to protest Gov. Cuomo's handling of the subway.
"I don't think it's a competitive race," she conceded, "so I don't think it's gonna do much."
Either way, she says she'll absolutely show up.
| | NJ Congressman Facing Backlash for His Backlash Unlike almost every New Jersey Republican in Congress, Rep. Tom MacArthur (NJ-3) remains anti-Affordable Care Act. This is the man who kicked off his second term in the House by reviving the Obamacare repeal effort. Now, with health care polling at the top of voters' concerns, many of MacArthur's constituents aren't happy with his anti-ACA stance, and Democratic challenger Andy Kim is laser focused on using that against him. (WNYC News) | | 90 Minutes With the 'Long-Shots and No-Shots' Republican Marc Molinaro, the Serve America Movement's Stephanie Miner, Libertarian Larry Sharpe, and the Green Party's Howie Hawkins—all New York gubernatorial candidates—held their final debate last night. In addition to laying out their positions on ethics reform and charter schools, the candidates took some time to bash their absent opponent, Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who was busy cutting a ribbon at an airport in Syracuse. (Politico) | | And if Andrew Cuomo Wins a Third Term... He'll ostensibly want to cement his legacy as one of The Great New York Governors. Like FDR, or his hero (and father), Mario Cuomo. And he's built a case for himself—under his watch, the state passed marriage equality, a minimum wage increase, new gun control laws, and eight (mostly) on-time budgets. But for a guy who loves posing with construction tools, he's now synonymous with our crumbling subways and other incomplete infrastructure projects. If he wants to go down as the get-it-done governor, he may have to sacrifice any 2020 hopes. (The New York Times) | | A Listener Recommendation: | | Support WNYC + Gothamist Make a donation to support local, independent journalism. Your contributions are our largest source of funding and pays for essential election coverage and more. | | | | |
