A clergy group is holding a rally to suppport David R. Gantt (clockwise from top l.) Patricia D. Savage, Roger N. Scotland and Lynn Smith. Photos courtesy state attorney general's office

A nonprofit comprised of clergy and headed by the Rev. Charles Norris Sr. of southeast Queens plans to rally next week outside Nassau Supreme Court in defense of four associates of state Sen. Shirley Huntley (D-Jamaica), who were indicted on grand larceny charges.

The group, Clergy United for Community Empowerment, says the four associates — Huntley staffer Patricia Savage, David Gantt, Roger Scotland and Lynn Smith — are innocent and it planned the Feb. 1 event to show its support for them.

The four were indicted after an investigation by state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman that allegedly found they stole from a nonprofit created by Huntley.

Huntley has not been charged.

Norris, president of the clergy group, is leading the rally outside Nassau Supreme Court in Mineola Feb. 1.

“We have received an outpouring of support and hope the court will recognize that a grave injustice has been done,” he said in a statement.

The state attorney general indicted four people associated with a non-profit that was created by state Sen. Shirley Huntley, David R. Gantt (clockwise from top l.) Patricia D. Savage, Roger N. Scotland and Lynn Smith. Photos courtesy state attorney general's office

A member of state Sen. Shirley Huntley's staff and her niece were indicted for allegedly taking thousands of dollars from the state.

State Sen. Shirley Huntley (D-Jamaica) went on the defensive last week after state prosecutors indicted four of her associates, including her niece, as part of an investigation into state money that went into a nonprofit that the senator created.

Although state Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman and state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli have not charged Huntley, investigators maintain the thousands of dollars in member item money she gave to Parent Workshop Inc. was squandered by the group’s administrators.

Huntley, who created the educational outreach group before being elected to office in 2006?, contended that she did not knowingly shortchange taxpayers.

“The joint investigation by the attorney general and the comptroller found no wrongdoing on my part. I am confident that when all of the facts are presented they will prove I acted appropriately,” she said in a statement.

Member items are funds in the state budget given to lawmakers to dole out to nonprofits primarily in their legislative districts.

Patricia D. Savage, an aide to Huntley, and Lynn H. Smith, the senator’s niece who lives in her home, were indicted Dec. 7 on 11 counts of grand larceny and offering a false instrument in the theft of nearly $30,000 that was set aside for Parent Workshop Inc., which operates out of southeast Queens, the attorney general said.

“The charges announced today send a strong message that those who abuse their positions to rip off taxpayers will be prosecuted,” Schneiderman said in a statement.

Two other Parent Workshop associates, David R. Gantt and Roger N. Scotland, were charged with falsifying business records for allegedly trying to cover up the theft, according to the attorney general.

Scotland, who is the president of the Southern Queens Park Association, was also charged with tampering with physical evidence, Schneiderman said.

The group was created to give support to schools and parents with outreach and educational enhancement programs, according to the attorney general.

Savage, who was the president of Parent Workshop, and Smith, who acted as the group’s treasurer, falsely asserted that the member item money given to the nonprofit would be used to “hold workshops for and conduct outreach to parents on the workings of the New York City public school system,” Schneiderman said.

The pair allegedly submitted a fraudulent contract and fake vouchers to claim the $29,950 they received from the state between April 2008 and March 2009, according to the attorney general.

During that time, however, Parent Workshop had no events or outreach, the attorney general said.

Gantt allegedly falsified records to make it look like he was paid in cash for the phony workshops and Scotland allegedly created a false record in an attempt to hide the theft once the investigation started, according to Schneiderman.

The attorney general’s and state comptroller’s offices would not comment on whether there were more indictments to come as part of the investigation.

“Abuse and fraud will not be tolerated. By combining forces, my office and the attorney general have exposed and are prosecuting this egregious theft of state funds which were intended for the public good,” the comptroller said.

City Comptroller John Liu was ordered to pay more than $500,000 in fines for violations relating to his 2009 campaign, even as he defends current fund-raising for his 2013 mayoral run.

This was probably not the kind of publicity City Comptroller John Liu had hoped for.

The aspiring mayor is facing both a fine for a previous campaign and an accusation of malfeasance surrounding his current one.

Late last month he announced that he had retained former state Attorney General Robert Abrams to audit his yet-unregistered campaign for mayor after a scathing report by The New York Times.

And Oct. 20 the Environmental Control Board issued Liu $527,400 in fines for putting up campaign posters on public property during his 2009 bid for comptroller, according to records released by the city.

The board — which hears cases in which a person or business has violated a health or safety law but does not judicate crimes — released the information late last month about the Oct. 20 decision.

The posters in question were plastered on public property, and in one case a tree, and each one carried a fine of at least $75. Liu’s campaign office erroneously placed just over 7,000 of them, according to the court decision.

The fines were issued once before by the city Department of Sanitation, but thrown out due to a technicality.

The board threw out the violations in March when it was found that they were not properly delivered to Liu’s campaign, according to city documents.

But Sanitation reissued the violations, and Liu was ultimately ordered to pay the fines under the most recent decision.

A lawyer representing Liu told the New York Post that the mayoral hopeful plans to appeal the decision again.

And in addition to his past campaigns, Liu is also running into trouble with his possible bid for mayor.

An Oct. 11 report in The Times found that many of the people listed as donating to Liu’s campaign war chest denied giving money when confronted by reporters.

Liu currently has more than $1.5 million in his campaign coffers, according to the city Campaign Finance Board, with many of the donations in the amount of $800, a number the Times reports is associated with the number 8, which is auspicious in Chinese culture.

The report cited other sources who said donors with deep pockets allegedly filled out additional cards in the names of unsuspecting employees in order to give Liu more money than is legally allowed, the report said.

Liu responded to the allegations soon afterward, welcoming any scrutiny of his campaign finances.

He announced that he would retain Abrams to thoroughly vet his cash Oct. 28.

State Sen. Tony Avella (inset) wants the state attorney general and state comptroller to review land sales of more than $100,000 to private companies, following the sale of Creedmoor.

Inspired by the controversial sale of Creedmoor land to the Indian Cultural and Community Center, state Sen. Tony Avella (D-Bayside) penned legislation that would require the state attorney general and state comptroller to review and approve all land sales worth $100,000 and higher to private companies.

The state Dormitory Authority sold a 4 1/2-acre parcel of Creedmoor land to the ICCC, which is seeking a variance to build two nine-story senior housing towers and a community center.

The ICCC’s plans have been heavily criticized by community leaders, who say the group was not upfront about the senior housing proposal and the buildings are out of character with the surrounding community.

“Unfortunately, the lack of oversight from local governments have led to instances of favoritism and lost revenue for the state,” Avella said. “We need to eliminate loopholes that allow private entities to acquire valuable state lands at extremely discounted rates and create a form of oversight that ensures that these deals are done fairly, honestly and at a competitive price.”

Avella and community leaders questioned how the ICCC was able to acquire the land due to its dubious finances — its most recent tax returns show it ran a $29,000 deficit.

The state attorney general’s office and the state inspector general’s office are conducting investigations into the ICCC deal.

Avella’s bill requires that the attorney general and the comptroller review any sale of state-owned land when a public sale or auction is not required.

The ICCC acquired the Creedmoor land through legislation sponsored by then-Sen. Frank Padavan and former Assemblyman Mark Weprin, who now sits in the City Council.

“One of the main intentions of this legislation is to prevent any perceived or actual improper influence from an elected official pressuring state agencies or public authorities to sell state land to specific groups, at a discounted rate for political gain. There needs to be more transparency and accountability involved,” Avella said. “In the end, the taxpayers win as the state will receive more revenue and there will be more competition for available land. It will also afford local elected officials the opportunity for input and review of any proposed sale or transfer.”

Community Board 13 is currently reviewing the ICCC’s plans and is expected to decide whether it approves of a variance for the group when CB 13 meets Oct. 31.

Eric Schneiderman Photo courtesy state attorney general's office

State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said he was filing a lawsuit Tuesday against the federal government for what he said was a failure to commit to an environmental review of proposed regulations that would allow natural gas drilling — including a technique known as hydrofracking — in the Delaware River Basin.

“Before any decisions on drilling are made, it is our responsibility to follow the facts and understand the public health and safety effects posed by potential natural gas development,” Schneiderman said. “The federal government has an obligation to undertake the necessary studies, and as I made clear last month, this office will compel it to do so. The welfare of those living near the Delaware River Basin, as well as the millions of New Yorkers who rely on its pure drinking water each day, will not be ignored.”

The attorney general said a method of horizontal drilling combined with hydraulic fracturing — hydrofracking — poses risks to the environment, citing an April incident in Pennsylvania where a blowout in a natural gas drill site caused gallons of chemical-laced water to spill over neighboring land and into a stream.

State Sen. Shirley Huntley is facing probes from both state and federal investigators.

State Sen. Shirley Huntley (D-St. Albans) is under federal investigation, a legislative source familiar with the probe said.

While the source could not say exactly why federal investigators were looking at Huntley, the New York Post reported the southeast Queens senator received a federal subpoena in connection with $400,000 in member items she helped steer toward a nonprofit connected to her family and friends.

Neither Huntley nor her attorney, Mark Pollard, would comment.

Both the Manhattan and Brooklyn U.S. attorneys have ongoing probes into Huntley, the Post said, but it was unclear whether the two offices were investigating the same matters.

The source said the investigation comes as Gov. Andrew Cuomo has called on legislators who are attorneys and have clients who do business with the state to disclose their clients as well as how much they are getting paid.

The federal investigation follows subpoenas issued by state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman to the nonprofit Parent Information Network Inc., which is run by Huntley’s daughter, Pamela Corley, according to the Associated Press, and received $400,000 in member item funding from the state Assembly between 1993 and 2008 and another $30,000 from Huntley in 2008.

Another subpoena from Schneiderman’s office was received by the group Parent Information, which Huntley created before she was elected in 2006 and was formerly run by one of her staffers, the AP said.

Campaign finance records show Corley and Savage were paid thousands of dollars by Huntley ?for various events over the last couple of years.

In July, Corley was paid $1,000 for consulting, the next month she was paid $5,000 for polls and in September she was paid $2,400 for “office” and more than $37,000 for wages, according to state campaign finance records.

Savage was paid $425 in July 2009 for campaign literature, $974 in September 2009 and $1,100 in December 2009 for fund-raising, campaign finance records show.

In January, she was paid more than $573 for office expenses, a month later she was paid $400 for a census kickoff and in November she was paid $200 for refreshments and $5,000 the next month for consulting services, according to campaign finance records.

Former state Comptroller Alan Hevesi awaits sentencing at Manhattan Supreme Court, where Judge Michael Obus handed down the maximum sentence of one to four years in prison for Hevesi's role in corruption of the state pension fund. AP Photo/Stephen Chernin

Former state Comptroller Alan Hevesi (c.) arrives with sons Daniel (r.) and Andrew at Manhattan Supreme Court, where he was sentenced to one to four years in prison. Ap Photo/Stephen Chernin

He used to be state comptroller, but now Forest Hills resident Alan Hevesi is known as Inmate 11-R-1334.

Hevesi was sent to a jail Friday in upstate Ulster County after being sentenced earlier that day to one to four years in prison for his role in the corruption scheme involving the state pension fund.

The 71-year-old Hevesi, who was also a former state assemblyman and city comptroller, pleaded guilty in October in Manhattan Supreme Court to taking about $1 million in gifts, including trips to Israel and Italy, in exchange for pension fund business.

In addressing the court, Hevesi admitted wrongdoing before Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Michael Obus sentenced him Friday to the maximum sentence of one to four years in prison.

In speaking about the public, Hevesi said, “I violated their trust and take full responsibility for my indiscretion. I publicly disgraced myself.

“I have only myself to blame for what I have done,” Hevesi said.

Hevesi, who was comptroller from January 2003 to December 2006, admitted to accepting nearly $1 million in gifts from Elliott Broidy, the California-based founder of Markstone Capital Partners, a hedge fund that specializes in Israeli investments.

In return for the gifts, Hevesi invested $250 million in pension fund dollars with Markstone.

In calling for the maximum sentence, prosecutor Ellen Biben dismissed Hevesi attorney Bradley Simon’s urging that Hevesi’s behavior was a temporary lapse in judgement.

“Defendant Hevesi is a highly sophisticated individual … and has spent most of his professional life and more than 30 years in different public positions. This conduct does not reflect an aberration. It reflects a pattern,” Biben said. “Defendant Hevesi’s conduct during his tenure as comptroller is particularly offensive. Your honor, simply put, instead of using his power to protect the pension fund, he abused his power.”

Simon asked Obus to put Hevesi’s conduct “in perspective,” arguing Morris and David Loglisci, who also pleaded guilty in connection with abuse of the pension fund, benefitted greater financially than Hevesi did.

“Mr. Hevesi accepts the fact that Mr. Morris and Mr. Loglisci and others amassed enormous financial wealth under his watch,” Simon said.

Simon said Hevesi “continues to live an extremely modest lifestyle,” living in the same attached house in Forest Hills that he has for years. “It’s never been about money or wealth for Mr. Hevesi.”

Simon said Hevesi fought for the first hospice law in the state and patients who could not afford to pay are not turned down by hospitals because of the former assemblyman.

“We have to look at Mr. Hevesi as a man and not make him a symbol for public integrity,” Simon said.

The attorney argued that Hevesi has heart disease and needs a pacemaker and that any jail time “could possibly be a death sentence for him.”

“Mr. Hevesi has already been punished by how he has disgraced himself, by how he has disgraced his family,” Simon said. “He knows he’s a pariah.”

But Obus sided with the prosecutors, saying the “damage” that Hevesi caused to the comptroller’s office “is quite profound.”

State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, Hevesi’s successor, called the sentence “a welcome and just conclusion to a year-long saga.

“Mr. Hevesi betrayed the trust of all New Yorkers,” DiNapoli said. “His sentence is clear evidence that this type of behavior will not be tolerated.”

State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, who took over the prosecution of Hevesi after Gov. Andrew Cuomo was elected governor, said Hevesi was “appropriately punished.”

“Hevesi brazenly sold access to New York pension fund investments — a betrayal of the public trust that went to the heart of his duties as comptroller,” Schneiderman said.

State Sen. Shirley Huntley paid her daughter thousands of dollars for various jobs on her election campaigns, according to campaign finance records.

Taxpayer money that was distributed to education groups with close ties to state Sen. Shirley Huntley (D-Jamaica) has caught the state attorney general’s eye, according to a published report.

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has issued subpoenas to the nonprofit Parent Information Network Inc., which is run by Huntley’s daughter Pamela Corley, and another group called Parent Information, which the senator created before she was elected to office in 2006 and was formerly run by one of her staffers, the Associated Press reported.

The subpoenas request information from the groups about grant money that was distributed to them from discretionary funds distributed by Huntley, who sits on the Senate Education Committee, according to the AP.

The attorney general’s office and Huntley declined to comment about the ongoing investigation. The senator’s district includes the neighborhoods of Jamaica, Laurelton, Springfield Gardens, Richmond Hill, Ozone Park and parts of Forest Hills.

Parent Information Network received more than $400,000 in state Assembly funding between 1993 and 2008 to advise parents how to “navigate New York City schools,” according to records from the state Department of Education. Two requests made by the Assembly in 2006 for grants to the group, which totaled $33,000, and another request made two years later for a $30,000 grant, were not approved, the records show.

Some of the money was allocated by state Assemblywoman Vivian Cook (D-Jamaica), who the AP said dispensed $30,000 in taxpayer dollars to the group in 2008.

Cook did not return phone calls for comment.

In 2008, Huntley also awarded Parent Information a state grant of $30,000 for training and supplies, according to the AP. In that same year, the nonprofit’s president, Patricia Savage, ended her term as the head of Parent Information and joined the senator’s staff as a “confidential assistant” and earns $85,000 a year, the AP reported.

Campaign finance records show Corley and Savage were paid thousands of dollars by Huntley ?for various events over the last couple of years.

In July, Corley was paid $1,000 for consulting, the next month she was paid $5,000 for polls, and in September she was paid $2,400 for “office” and more than $37,000 for wages, according to state campaign finance records.

Savage was paid $425 in July 2009 for literature, $974 in September 2009 and $1,100 in December 2009 for fund-raising, campaign finance records show. Last January, she was paid more than $573 for “office,” a month later she was paid $400 for a Census kickoff and in November she was paid $200 for refreshments and $5,000 the next month for consulting services, according to campaign finance records.

The U.S. attorney’s office is also investigating U.S. Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-Jamaica) and Sen. Malcolm Smith (D-St. Albans) over a nonprofit they created. The investigation into the now-defunct New Direction Development Corp. began after the charity’s income and spending practices were questioned.

Bradley Simon (l.), attorney for disgraced ex-comptroller Alan Hevesi (c.), is arguing that the judge who is responsible for sentencing Hevesi has a conflict of interest. AP Photo/Louis Lanzano

The attorney for disgraced former state Comptroller Alan Hevesi was expected to file papers Tuesday arguing that the judge charged with sentencing the Forest Hills resident has a conflict of interest and another judge should hand down the sentencing, state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman’s office said.

Hevesi’s attorney, Bradley D. Simon, could not be reached for comment.

Hevesi, who was the sole trustee of the state’s multibillion-dollar pension fund when he was comptroller, pleaded guilty Oct. 7 to taking more than $1 million in gifts in exchange for $250 million in pension fund business from Markstone Capital Partners, a private equity firm that has some involvement in Israeli investments.

Hevesi admitted to using part of the $1 million to visit Israel and Italy with some staff and family members.

Nearly five months after his guilty plea, Hevesi has still not been sentenced for his role in the corruption scheme.

His sentencing has been adjourned three times — Dec. 16, Feb. 1 and March 1 — according to court records.

Schneiderman’s office said Simon was expected to argue that Manhattan Supreme Court Judge Lewis Bart Stone had a conflict of interest because Stone and Simon’s father are longtime friends, although the younger Simon does not get along with his father.

Stone also is the executor of Simon’s parents’ wills.

A spokesman for Schneiderman would not comment on whether his office believed the maneuver was another tactic to get Hevesi’s sentencing postponed again.

Hevesi has been released on his own recognizance each time his sentencing was adjourned, according to court records.

The attorney general’s office said Stone is expected to decide March 28 whether he has a conflict.

If the judge decides there is no conflict, he is expected to sentence Hevesi on that date, the attorney general’s office said.

Hevesi’s political right-hand man, Hank Morris, was sentenced to up to four years in prison late last month for receiving so-called placement fees in exchange for getting the pension fund to invest with favored firms.

Hevesi had been out of office when he was charged with corruption.

As part of a plea deal, Hevesi resigned in 2008 after it was found he had the state police chauffeur his ailing wife despite there being no threat against his wife’s life.

State Sen.-elect Tony Avella (l.) and state Assemblyman Rory Lancman discuss problems with the new voting system during last week's election. Photo by Anna Gustafson

While there were fewer problems with the new voting system in last week’s general election than in the primary, complaints about the ballots and machines were still widespread and the city and state need to address the small font size and privacy issues, state Assemblyman Rory Lancman (D-Fresh Meadows) and state Sen.-elect Tony Avella said this week.

City Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D-Manhattan) also announced the results of the Council’s Election Day survey Tuesday, in which nearly 1,200 city residents from 300 different polling sites across the city participated and a third reported problems with the ballot design and small font size. Many elderly Queens residents interviewed by TimesLedger Newspapers last week said they had serious difficulty reading the ballot.

“New York’s new voting system raises as many questions as it answers, and we need to smooth out the kinks in the system now before we end up with our own Florida 2000 debacle in some future election,” Lancman said at a Tuesday press conference he held with Avella. “This year’s elections showed serious flaws in privacy, access and preparedness that cannot be left unaddressed.”

The new system, which was mandated by the federal Help America Vote Act, makes voters select their candidates by filling out ovals — something reminiscent of multiple choice tests — on a paper ballot that is fed into a scanner. The scanner then records the voter’s choice and the physical evidence of the ballot will remain — one of the main stipulations of the federal act, which was passed in part as a response to the confusion over the Florida ballots in the 2000 presidential election.

After voters and many city lawmakers, including Mayor Michael Bloomberg, railed against operations during Primary Day, when voting machines broke down or were delivered hours late to their polling site, the city Board of Elections said it took extra precautions to ensure a smooth general election.

“Generally speaking, the Election Day operations went well,” city BOE spokeswoman Valerie Vazquez-Rivera wrote in an e-mail. “On Nov. 2, the board focused on ensuring all voters were able to privately and independently vote and quickly responded to and resolved issues. The board staff closely monitored, logged and addressed problems as they were reported from across the city via our call center and Twitter, including dispatching technicians and, when necessary, back up scanners and staff to poll sites.”

Still, Lancman and Avella said there are major flaws in the new system that need to be addressed, including voter privacy — voters no longer have a curtain behind which they can cast their vote and instead have to carry their ballot from a desk to the scanner, which could allow someone to see their ballots. Lancman and Avella noted in the primary election that officials often did not provide a “privacy sleeve,” or a folder, in which to carry the ballot, though they more frequently did during last week’s election.

“We need to make sure inspectors are better trained,” Avella said.

Lancman and Avella agreed with the Council’s findings on the ballot.

“The results of the Council’s survey show that ballot design and font size is a real problem for many of New Yorkers,” Quinn said. “We look forward to working with our local good government partners on the different ways we can improve the layout of the ballot.”

Councilman Dan Halloran (R-Whitestone) and Lancman said they thought the design of the ballot likely deterred residents, particularly older people, from voting all the way down the ballot. Both said they believed many people likely voted for governor but then did not vote for many of the other offices because it was too difficult to navigate the ballot or read the font.

“The voting system sucked,” Halloran said. “I know of at lease a dozen older people, personally including my two in-laws, who left the polling places because they said they were waiting on line” and did not want to stay any longer.

“Those seniors are Frank’s voters,” Halloran said, referring to state Sen. Frank Padavan (R-Bellerose), who lost the race.

Lancman and Avella said they will push legislation in Albany to reform the voting process, including allowing college students to be election inspectors even if they do not live in Queens, which is currently mandated, in order to get younger people who are more adept at technology working in elections.

Avella noted that he would like to see the state Board of Elections issue a voter guide, similar to what the city puts out, in order to better inform residents about candidates.

Neighbors Milke Kane and Loretta Boehm chat while waiting to vote at PS 41 in Bayside. Behind them is one of twp broken voting scannes. The polling place at about 11 a.m. only had one working machine. Photo by Christina Santucci

The 2010 midterm elections drew residents from every corner of Queens to vote in races that ousted its last remaining Republican in Albany and changed the face of politics in a borough where Republicans and Tea Party members made little headway despite a national groundswell of support for more conservative politicians.

From Whitestone to Jamaica, Queens residents came out to cast their ballots for what is now an all-Democratic delegation representing the borough, removing state Sen. Frank Padavan (R-Bellerose) after his nearly four decades in Albany and ushering in Democrat Tony Avella. The only Republicans left to represent Queens are at the city level: Councilmen Dan Halloran (R-Bayside), Peter Koo (R-Flushing) and Eric Ulrich (R-Ozone Park).

Some Democrats in Queens, including U.S. Reps. Anthony Weiner (D-Forest Hills) and Gary Ackerman (D-Bayside), had more of a contest from the conservative movement that helped Republicans win at least 60 seats to capture the U.S. House. Both fended off challenges from Tea Party-supported candidates who carved out more of the vote than Weiner and Ackerman usually cede to opponents.

“The Paladino effect was very negative on southern portions of New York state,” Queens GOP spokesman Robert Hornak said of Republican gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino, who was criticized for what many called extremist policies and statements. “It really hurt candidates down the ballot.”

Hornak said just 14 percent of those who voted in the city cast their ballots for Paladino, who received 34.13 percent of the vote statewide, compared to Democrat Andrew Cuomo’s 61.43 percent across the state, according to state Board of Elections results.

Queens College political science professor Michael Krasner said the Tea Party made little attempt to win over voters in the city because it is so heavily Democratic. Still, conservative activists did gain some ground in Staten Island, where GOP-backed Michael Grimm defeated Democratic U.S. Rep. Michael McMahon, and portions of Queens, particularly along the border of the often more conservative Long Island, which Ackerman represents, and such areas as Rockaway Beach, represented by Weiner and home to his Republican rival.

Weiner landed 58.51 percent of the vote compared to Republican Bob Turner’s 41.49 percent. The congressman in 2008 drew more than 90 percent of the vote. Ackerman received a higher percentage of the vote than Weiner with 62.43 percent, compared to GOP candidate James Milano’s 36.92 percent.

“The Democratic registration is so big in both Weiner’s and Ackerman’s districts that it would’ve taken not just a stronger Republican registration but some kind of scandal engulfing the Democratic candidate for them to have lost,” said Krasner, who studies local politics. “Both of those congressmen are energetic and active in their districts, and their staff does effective constituency work.”

Krasner agreed with Hornak that Paladino likely cost Republican votes in Queens. Hornak said he believed there was a light turnout of Republicans in Queens, particularly in Padavan’s 11th Senate District, though the city Board of Elections said it will not have those statistics for some time. Poll workers throughout the borough, including Forest Hills, Jamaica, Whitestone and Middle Village reported seeing a large number of voters for a midterm election, and The New York Times reported about 46 percent of the city’s registered voters came to the polls — an increase over the 36 percent of registered voters who participated in the 2006 midterm election.

“It’s a measure of the incompetence and near lunacy of Paladino’s campaign that he lost by as much as he did,” Krasner said.

Many groups’ exit polls that separated out Queens voters from the rest of the city had yet to be publicized, but the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund said their exit polls found Korean Americans overwhelmingly favored Avella over Padavan. Just 11 percent of the Korean Americans polled supported Padavan, according to the AALDEF, which organization officials said in part was because of Padavan’s “anti-immigrant positions.”

Councilwoman Julissa Ferreras (D-East Elmhurst) and Make the Road New York Executive Director Ana Maria Archila said the Republican gains in the U.S. House made them doubtful that comprehensive immigration reform would occur over the next two years, a sentiment Weiner also has expressed.

“I’m very concerned,” Ferreras said. “Immigration was looking like it would be the next big conversation after health care, and now it’s not even heard of. We may miss out on a great opportunity.”

Archila also said she was worried about the balance of power in the state Senate, which currently hangs in limbo. The Senate is now controlled by the Democrats, though three seats are currently in question and residents may not know for months whether there will be a Democratic or Republican majority.

“In New York state, it was very, very important to see an attorney general who has a record of fighting for immigrants win,” Archila said of Attorney General-elect Eric Schneiderman. “That’s remarkable in this environment.”

City Comptroller John Liu (third from l.), U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrad (c.) and State Attorney General candidate Eric Schneiderman (third from r.) meet voters during a tour of downtown Flushing. Photo by Connor Adams Sheets

U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and Democratic state Attorney General candidate Eric Schneiderman toured downtown Flushing with City Comptroller John Liu Friday in a last-minute push for Queens votes.

Recreating a similar walk in support of Liu’s candidacy last year, the trio trekked with their entourage from the Queens Crossing plaza, along Main Street, where they visited the Chinese-owned Tai Pan Bakery and Hong Kong Supermarket, up 37th Avenue, where they stopped in at Joe’s Shanghai Restaurant, then down Union Street, where they stopped in at the Korean-owned Canaan Bakery.

Along the way they shook hands with voters and shoppers, drawing a gaggle of press and onlookers and creating quite a scene as they navigated Flushing’s already jammed streets.

Gillibrand’s remarks focused in large part on her plans for the economy.

“This election is about making sure small businesses have access to the capital they need to create new jobs,” she said. “We want to create jobs. We want to make sure middle-class families are able to make ends meet and that small businesses have the capital they need to create jobs. Middle-class families and small businesses — that’s who we’re fighting for.”

She also addressed Chinese reporters’ repeated questions about the country’s relationship with their home country.

“We want to make sure our playing field is fair on issues like trade agreements, but our relationship is very strong,” she said. “The more we can work together, the better it is for both of us.”

The candidates and Liu further emphasized the need for people to turn out at the polls Tuesday and stated their commitment to the people of Flushing.

“On Nov. 2, make sure to go out and vote,” Schneiderman said. “We’ll see you here after the election, too.”

Among the revelers were State Sen. Toby Stavisky (D-Whitestone), her Democratic Primary challengers John Messer and Isaac Sasson, state Assemblywoman Grace Meng (D-Flushing), City Councilmen Peter Koo (R-Flushing) and Dan Halloran (R-Whitestone), City Comptroller John Liu, New York Attorney General candidate Kathleen Rice, and U.S. Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-Bayside).

The union, which represents 90,000 freelancers, consultants, independent contractors, temps, part-timers, and self-employed workers in New York state – including 80,000 in New York City – named priority candidates as well as general endorsements.

For state Senate it endorsed incumbent Toby Ann Stavisky (D-Whitestone) in the 16th District, incumbent Joseph Addabbo (D-Howard Beach) in the 15th District, and Democrat Tony Avella in the 11th District. For state Assembly the group endorsed Democrat Francisco Moya in the 39th District, Democrat Aravella Simotas in the 36th District, incumbent Jeff Aubry (D-Corona) in the 35th District, incumbent Andrew Hevesi (D-Forest Hills) in the 28th District, Ed Braunstein in the 26th District, and incumbent Rory Lancman (D-Fresh Meadows) in the 25th District. It endorsed Democrat Andrew Cuomo for Governor, Democrat Eric Schneiderman for state Attorney General and Democratic incumbent Thomas DiNapoli for state Comptroller.

“Freelancers Union is growing a powerful political operation to give New York’s freelancers a strong voice in Albany,” Sara Horowitz, executive director of Freelancers Union who founded it as Working Today in 1995, said in a statement. “Independent workers are a third of the workforce, but without unemployment insurance and nonpayment protection, they’re getting left behind. This election season we’re working to change that by mobilizing New York’s massive network of plugged-in ‘twitteratti’.”

The reference to Twitter, the ubiquitous Web site, refers to the group’s plans to utilize social networking, as well as “traditional on the ground strategies, as well as viral and guerrilla marketing tactics” as a means to help the candidates it supports.

“The new workforce needs champions, and these candidates are those champions. We look forward to working hard for them on the campaign trail, so they can work hard for us in the state capitol,” Horowitz said.

A large contingent of Queens Democrats gathered with Nassau County DA Kathleen Rice (c.) to endorse her bid for attorney general. Photo by Anna Gustafson

Attorney General candidate Kathleen Rice landed endorsements from the Queens County Democratic Organization and dozens of elected officials from the borough on Thursday.

U.S. Rep. Joseph Crowley (D-Jackson Heights), chair of the organization, announced the endorsement at an event outside Queens Borough Hall Thursday morning.

“Rice has the experience, the passion and the drive to continue Andrew Cuomo’s good work, and I have no doubt that she will be a great attorney general for Queens and for all of New York,” Crowley said of the Democratic candidate. “Today’s endorsement is just the beginning. We will stand by our good neighbor from Nassau every day as a powerful ally, helping to deliver her victory.”

Rice, the district attorney in Nassau County whose parents grew up in Forest Hills, was endorsed by a slew of people, including Borough President Helen Marshall, state Sens. Shirley Huntley (D-Jamaica), George Onorato (D-Astoria) and Toby Stavisky (D-Whitestone); and Assembly members Barbara Clark (D-Queens Village), Vivian Cook (D-Jamaica), Michael DenDekker (D-Jackson Heights), Andrew Hevesi (D-Forest Hills), Rory Lancman (D-Fresh Meadows), Nettie Mayersohn (D-Flushing) and Audrey Pheffer (D-Rockaway Beach). City Council members James Gennaro (D-Fresh Meadows), Karen Koslowitz (D-Forest Hills) and Mark Weprin (D-Oakland Gardens) also threw their support behind Rice.

“Having the support of the Queens Democratic Organization and all of these leaders here today gives me the most diverse coalition of supporters of all the candidates running for attorney general. I’m excited to tell the people of Queens what I stand for, and to hear from them what issues matter most to them.”

Rice is running in the Democratic primary against state Assemblyman Richard Brodsky (D-Westchester), state Sen. Eric Schneiderman (D-Manhattan), retired Naval captain Sean Coffey and former New York Insurance Superintendent Eric Dinallo.

Andrew Hevesi

Raymond Harding, the former chairman of the state Liberal Party, admitted he received more than $800,000 in exchange for doing political favors, including opening up a Queens state Assembly seat for former state Comptroller Alan Hevesi’s son, Andrew, the state attorney general said last week.

But Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has said Assemblyman Andrew Hevesi (D-Forest Hills) was not aware of the maneuvers made on his behalf. A spokesman for Andrew Hevesi said he had no comment on the matter.

Harding pleaded guilty Oct. 6 to one count of felony securities fraud for his involvement in pay-to-play kickback schemes at the state Office of the Comptroller and the state Common Retirement Fund, Cuomo said. He faces up to four years in prison.

The plea “vividly depicts the depth and breadth of corruption involving the New York State pension fund,” Cuomo said.

Harding has agreed to cooperate with the attorney general’s investigation. The attorney general’s office has been looking into corruption involving the state comptroller’s office and the state pension fund for the past two years.

Harding said in New York County Supreme Court last week that he participated in a scheme devised by Hank Morris, a top political adviser to Alan Hevesi, and David Loglisci, the former station pension fund chief investment officer, to corrupt the process of selecting investments at the state pension fund to favor political allies, friends and family, Cuomo said.

In addition, Harding, a longtime ally of Alan Hevesi and Rudy Giuliani, said he helped Andrew Hevesi’s predecessor, Michael Cohen, land a six-figure job at a health insurance company in early 2005, paving the way for the Assembly seat to be vacant for Andrew Hevesi, according to Cuomo.

As a reward for the political favors, Morris and Loglisci helped Harding secure more than $800,000 in fees relating to the pension fund’s investments, Cuomo said.

Attorneys for Harding and Alan Hevesi did not return phone calls for comment.

Morris and Loglisci have been charged in a separate 123-count indictment with, among other counts, enterprise corruption, securities fraud, grand larceny, bribery and money laundering, Cuomo said. Morris and Loglisci have pleaded not guilty.

Cohen, who has said he knew nothing about what Harding pleaded guilty to, has not been named by Cuomo in the investigation. Cohen left the state Assembly in 2005 and took a $150,000-per-year job at the Health Insurance Plan of Greater New York, where he is no longer employed.

Cohen had told TimesLedger Newspapers when he stepped down that he was doing so in order to care for his ill wife.

Reach reporter Anna Gustafson by e-mail at agustafson@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 174.

Ann-Margaret Carrozza

The Queens County Republican Party has called for an investigation of state Assemblywoman Ann-Margaret Carrozza (D-Bayside) after she admitted in late June that she had been living out of the district since March. But the assemblywoman said Tuesday that she had moved back to Bayside last week.

Queens GOP Chairman Phil Ragusa said the party wants Queens District Attorney Richard Brown, state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo and the state Ethics Board to determine whether Carrozza misled her constituents by living in a Glen Head property known as “The Crossways” that she and her husband, William Duke, purchased for $1.8 million in June 2008.

“In this time, when Albany dysfunction is at an all-time high and government spending is out of control at every level of government, we need to be extremely diligent in demanding real reform from our elected officials,” Ragusa said. “And the most basic reform we should demand is that officials truly live in the districts they are elected to represent, as required by law.”

Carrozza said state law did not prohibit her from temporarily living in the Long Island house. But she said this week that she was once again living in Bayside.

“I’m back in Bayside as of last week,” she said. “This smacks of early campaigning. I think all of our efforts are best focused on issues in Albany. I view this as a waste of taxpayer resources. We’ve seen in the past when politicians misdirect resources into baseless investigations. During this time of economic hardship for so many families, that money could be better spent.”

Randolph Yunker, a spokesman for the Nassau County Assessment Department, said Carrozza’s husband applied in December 2008 for a STAR exemption on the Glen Head property.

One of Carrozza’s Bayside homes had also received the exemption and would have saved the couple $232 on their 2009-2010 tax bill in Queens, city Finance Department records show. But a spokesman for that department said a request had been made by one of the property’s owners this week to remove the School Tax Relief Program exemption. The home will not receive the benefit for the fiscal year which began July 1, he said.

The application for the Long Island property had been approved, but the Nassau department froze it when it discovered that the Bayside home already had an exemption.

STAR, which is overseen by the state’s Office of Real Property Services, gives married couples a tax break on their primary residence. But state rules stipulate that a husband and wife can have an exemption for only one residence unless they are legally separated.

The deed for Carrozza’s Bayside home lists both her and her husband’s name, a Finance Department spokesman said. But the department could not verify who applied for a STAR exemption for the home.

Mortgage papers for the Glen Head home obligate the owner to “occupy the property and use the property as [their] principal residence within 60 days.” It also requires the owner to “continue to occupy the property and use the property for at least one year.”

Yunker said the couple would only be allowed to have one home with a STAR exemption.

“Our interest is not in who applied for it, but that there was a STAR on another piece of property,” he said. “We don’t check with other municipalities when someone applies. We take people at their word when they show us proof that they are living in a home.”

The Long Island property would not receive a tax break from a STAR exemption until after October, he said. The savings for the home, under last year’s assessment, could save its owner an estimated $700. But this year’s figures have not yet been determined.

In late June, Carrozza said she and her husband had been living in an “investment property” in Glen Head as they planned to adopt a child and search for a new home in Bayside. But the Queens property in which she previously lived would not provide enough space for three children and she had already promised to rent the home to an Oregon couple for part of the year. She currently owns two homes and two sites for office space in Bayside. She has not yet decided what she will ultimately do with the Long Island property, which she said is her husband’s primary residence.

John Conklin, director of public information for the state Elections Board, said elected officials are legally allowed to live outside their district as long as they intend to return.

Andrew Cuomo

State Sen. Hiram Monserrate (D-East Elmhurst) has sent a letter to state Attorney General Andrew Como asking for guidance in resolving the leadership quagmire in Albany, where the post of lieutenant governor is vacant.

He is questioning whether his colleague, Sen. Pedo Espada (D-Bronx), could fill the leadership vacuum as president pro tem of the Senate.

The Senate is divided by 31-31 votes between Democrats and Republicans with no one empowered to cast a tie-breaking vote.
When Gov. Eliot Spitzer resigned in March 2008, David Paterson became governor and his former post of lieutenant governor remained empty.

The letter reads,

Dear Attorney General Cuomo:

In the event Governor David Paterson becomes incapacitated or is compelled to temporarily leave the state, in that there is no lieutenant governor and competing views as to who currently holds the post of president pro tem of the state Senate, who would serve as acting governor?
I am respectfully requesting an advisory opinion from your office.

Sincerely,
Hon. Hiram Monserrate
New York State Senator

cc: Governor David Paterson