Political battle lines for 2009 are already being penciled in, in southwestern Brooklyn.
Nearly a year before Election Day, two Ridgites are looking at the possibility of challenging Democratic City Councilmember Vincent Gentile.
While neither would say that he is definitely in the race, both Republican Bob Capano — who is coming off an unsuccessful effort to unseat Assemblymember Alec Brook- Krasny — and Conservative John Quaglione, who has worked for Republican State Senator Marty Golden for about a decade — are both admittedly “seriously considering” a run.
Capano — who recently stood before Community Board 10 to bid farewell as the director of retiring Representative Vito Fossella’s Brooklyn office — may have tipped his hat when he told board members, “I am hopeful and confident, in the months and years to come, we will have an opportunity to work together for this community.”
The race, Capano told this paper, is “something I am going to look at early next year. I am going to be sitting down with the Republican and Conservative Party chairs. I do love serving my community and I am going to look at all opportunities to continue to do that in the future.”
Capano — who briefly ran for the Republican nomination for the position in 2005, but who bowed out when it became clear that another candidate was the party leaders’ choice — stressed that, in his career, he has worked for elected officials on both sides of the aisle, including two Democratic borough presidents, Marty Markowitz and Howard Golden. “I have a proven record of working across party lines,” he stressed.
“If I chose to run,” Capano averred, “I think all my expertise would help me represent the community well.”
Quaglione sang a similar tune. “I’m still very strongly considering a run for the City Council next year,” he noted. “I probably will make my decision early in the New Year. There has been some talk of it in the neighborhood. I’ve had some very positive feedback from a host of different ethnic groups, people in business, residents, people involved with schools and hospitals and different organizations.”
Quaglione said it was important to have a voice of opposition on the council. “There are things the City Council proposes that are not in tune with the majority of voters around here,” he noted. “I think there needs to be somebody standing up and going back at some of the proposals the leadership is putting up. The two-party system was created for a reason.”
Quaglione said he didn’t think it would be difficult for him to get the necessary waiver to run as a Republican. “It’s not that I’m a registered Liberal or Working Families Party member,” he noted. “I’m on the same side as the Republican Party.”
While, said Quaglione, Golden is aware of his interest in running, “We haven’t had a real serious conversation” about it yet. “I will probably sit down with him and some of his political minds before I make my decision,” he added.
Both Capano and Quaglione acknowledged the difficulty of challenging a popular incumbent like Gentile. “To know out an incumbent is a challenge,” said Quaglione. “That’s one of the first lessons in Politics 101.”
“Any incumbent is tough, but I think there are times when the electorate looks for change, looks for fresh faces, looks for new ideas,” stressed Capano.
Asked about a challenge, Gentile deflected the question. “This city is facing some tough times,” he told this paper. “I’m spending every second fighting for our community, not worrying about any election. Too many homeowners and seniors are worried about the future of their community for me to waste time worrying about politics.”
Political onlookers said that, in their view, the makeup of the district allowed for the possibility of an upset. “A challenge to Vinnie is always a serious challenge,” acknowledged Democratic District Leader Joe Bova. “It’s a fair-fight district.” Nonetheless, he said, “Vinnie has demonstrated himself to be a good councilman, deserving of reelection. At the end of the days, the voters will decide, but I think he’ll do fine.”
“It’s a difficult assignment to unseat Vinnie, but not impossible,” agreed Steve Maresca, a Republican. “He’s well-known and, for the most part, fairly well respected.”
Nonetheless, one GOP source shook his head at the idea. “It’s going to be very, very difficult to beat Gentile,” the insider said.
