Wiley and Morales Could Benefit from Stringer's Woes
Maya Wiley announces the start of her mayoral campaign outside the Brooklyn Museum, Oct. 8, 2020. Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY
[Ed. - NYPAN endorsed Maya Wiley and Dianne Morales jointly]
An allegation of sexual assault against mayoral hopeful Scott Stringer could help boost two of his fellow progressives in the race: Maya Wiley and Dianne Morales, political analysts said.
And the benefits could go beyond traditional all-out endorsements with the June 22 Democratic mayoral primary shaping up as the first citywide test of ranked choice voting, in which voters make their top five picks in order of preference.
“Scott has seen his path to Gracie Mansion going through the progressive areas of the city. He’s intentionally gone after that and tried to nurture that wing of the party for at least a couple of years,” said Eli Valentin, a political consultant. “The moment he loses that, those folks need to find a home.”
The city comptroller’s run for City Hall was thrown into turmoil this week when Jean Kim, who has worked as a lobbyist, accused Stringer of sexual assault and harassment, which she said occured when she was volunteering on his 2001 public advocate campaign. Stringer called the allegations “totally and categorically false,” and his campaign refuted several details of Kim’s account.
Stringer’s most powerful supporters — the United Federation of Teachers and Working Families Party — put out statements acknowledging the seriousness of the allegations, but have not rescinded their endorsements.
Some Stringer backers have already pulled their support, and others are actively mulling possible next steps. Mayor Bill de Blasio called for an investigation into the allegations. Mayoral candidates Kathryn Garcia and Shaun Donovan quickly demanded Stringer end his campaign, while Wiley and Morales added their voices to the call Thursday.
“Scott Stringer has held himself out as this progressive politician, and given what I’ve learned from Jean about him, I feel that if New York City needs a progressive mayor, they have several super qualified female progressive candidates, any of whom would do a great job,” said Patricia Pastor, the lawyer representing Kim.
‘Lacking in Justice and Equity’
So far, none of the groups or individuals who’ve taken back their endorsements of Stringer — including State Sen. Jessica Ramos (D-Queens), environmental group Food and Water Action and grocery-worker union UFCW Local 1500, among others — have picked replacement candidates.
In other cases, ranked choice voting is changing the political calculus.
State Sen. Jabari Brisport (D-Brooklyn) yanked his second-place backing of Stringer and declared he’s all in for his first choice pick, Morales, whom he praised as an “extraordinary and dedicated progressive leader.”