We’d love to endorse a general-election opponent against the likes of toxically leftist Darializa Avila Chevalier — but the combination of relentless Democratic gerrymandering and the sad state of New York’s Republican Party leaves no room for even a hopeless protest vote, let alone a real contest, in all too many districts.
If the US Supreme Court hadn’t stepped in to stop them, Albany Democrats would have happily erased NYC’s lone Republican Rep. Nicole Malliotakis’ district off the map entirely.
And the creation of dead-safe Democratic seats leaves few willing to jump through the hoops needed to get on the ballot as a Republican, and no one (donors or ill-funded party committees) eager to burn money on such candidates — so radical far-left candidates like Avila Chevalier and Claire Valdez become a lock as long as they can win their primary.
Brooklyn Republican Jennifer Moore jumped on the ballot to give voters a chance to “oppose Lander’s radical ideology,” as she puts it, but she’s a rarity.
In other cases, the GOP line gets grabbed by utter eccentrics, who sometimes sound even wackier than the DSA types.
The Republican Party is almost nonexistent in the five boroughs, with few “leaders” caring about much more than their meager patronage opportunities — and the statewide party, though honorably led, has precious few resources.
Some county parties have real strength, but the rival organizations have proved unable (or unwilling) to cooperate to start rebuilding a serious statewide operation, let alone help the city party find a new hope.
To be fair, New York’s Democratic Party isn’t in great shape, either: While it utterly dominates the city and state, it’s grown so flabby and complacent that for decades now it’s been gradually losing power to far-left outfits like the Democratic Socialists, whose energy and fervor make up for their limited numbers.
The only other serious power block is the public-sector unions, which don’t want ideologues interfering with their milking of the public fisc.
And so the left is turning safe Democratic seats into Democratic Socialist seats: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez will soon look almost moderate next to the likes of Valdez or Avila Chevalier, who claims it “doesn’t even matter” that an illegal immigrant and alleged gangbanger has a violent criminal record, and bizarrely insisting the Constitution forbids deporting illegal aliens.
Meanwhile, desperate power-seekers rush to embrace the far-left agenda: Lander, notably, continues to seek the love of anti-Israel, pro-Palestinian radicals who despise him despite his best efforts to pander.
We hold out hope for some GOP revival — giving voters a real alternative to the pro-criminal, anti-business madness consuming the Democrats by supporting common-sense candidates who celebrate the American Dream and address the real issues facing everyday New Yorkers.
And perhaps the state’s Democrats will realize that gerrymandering in the end is deadly to them, as well: When winning a low-turnout primary guarantees a lifetime job, political moderation dies and political lunacy thrives.
If New York can’t somehow return to the days of competitive elections, where politicians actually have to earn the majority’s votes, the state will keep spiraling down.
This story originally appeared on NYPost
