Cuomo Says He's Not Running for President

But he's been thinking about it. [Politics Brief from WNYC + Gothamist] [Keep friends and family informed. Forward the Politics Brief.]( Lessons From New York City's First-Ever Early-Voting Period By [James Ramsay]( Tod Seelie/Gothamist New York City will see four elections next year. We have the the special election for Queens Borough President in March. The presidential primary in April. The statewide primary in June. And the general election in November. That means we're looking at four separate nine-day early-voting periods in 2020. And judging by how things went this fall, during New York's first ever early-voting window, there are a couple key takeaways that could make the process next year more pleasant for all. The first suggestion: Don't do this in schools again. New York City officials, principals, parents, and teachers have united in complaining about early voting being held in schools, which required large facilities like gymnasiums and cafeterias to be handed over to the Board of Elections for five full school days. “We’ve heard from parents, we’ve heard from principals and we think there is a better way,” Ayirini Fonseca-Sabune, the city’s Chief Democracy Officer, told Gothamist/WNYC. On a regular day, it's an inconvenience for a school to lose the use of a gym or cafeteria. But next year, two elections — the April primary and June primary — fall during crucial state testing periods, when those facilities are especially crucial. "If you look at the borough of Queens, no schools were used for early voting," said Fonseca-Sabune, adding that the city has already identified 66 non-school sites that could be used. "We see cultural institutions, we see community centers, we see CUNY. Those are the institutions that should be used for early voting." The second major suggestion: Make sure all early-voting sites are accessible for people with disabilities. The Center for Independence of the Disabled NY (CIDNY) surveyed 72 sites during early voting and during the general election and found barriers at 64 percent of them. CIDNY's director told Gothamist/WNYC that certain polling places lacked proper signage, had locked doors at accessible entryways, ramps that were too narrow, and tripping hazards laying about. Many of these impediments, she added, were found in schools. Today, these concerns were discussed in a joint State Senate and Assembly hearing over how early voting was implemented around the state. And reporter Brigid Bergin, [who reported the information above]( was there. Check her Twitter feed below for the latest on where early voting goes from here. Newly Galvanized About Elise Stefanik? Don't Expect Her to Lose Her Seat Until recently, upstate Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik wasn't a preoccupation for many Democrats. Once the youngest representative ever elected (she was 30; Rep. Ocasio-Cortez won at 29), she's one of a handful of Republican woman in office, she frequently criticizes President Trump, and she believes in the urgent need to address [climate change](. Then, as a member of the House Intelligence Committee, she started going after impeachment inquiry witnesses on national television, and everyone from Chrissy Teigen to Zach Braff started throwing money at Tedra Cobb, the Democrat challenging her in 2020. Over this past weekend, Cobb says she raised $1 million. (Stefanik, meanwhile, has been promoting her impeachment inquiry performance [in order to raise money]( But whether you're enthralled with Stefanik (Trump called her a "rising star") or outraged by her questioning (Kellyanne Conway's husband called her "lying trash"), the fact is, Republican voters in her district outnumber Democrats by about 50,000. Stefanik beat Cobb in 2018's "Blue Wave" midterms by 14 points. And Trump will again be at the top of the ticket in a district (New York's 21st) that he won safely in 2016. "There are 15-20 legitimately vulnerable [Republican] House seats [in 2020]," Cook Political Report's Dave Wasserman [recently tweeted](. "#NY21 isn’t remotely one of them." Still, while Stefanik's 14-point win in 2018 was solid, that's a narrower gap than her previous victories. And this time around, she could be running against a challenger who's raised just as much money as she has. ([North Country Public Radio]( Tens of Thousands of Former Convicts Could Get to Vote in New Jersey Next Year A bill granting voting rights to people on parole or probation just made it out of a State Assembly committee. And if it reaches Gov. Phil Murphy's desk before the legislative session ends in mid-January, he's expected to sign it. While New Jersey already allows ex-cons who've completed their sentences to vote again, the state last year had 56,000 residents on probation and 15,000 on parole, most of whom couldn't vote. This bill would change that. Republicans who oppose the measure say it leads down a slippery slope towards allowing inmates to vote. Though Democrats haven't explicitly said they want to give prisoners voting rights, Assemblywoman Shavonda Sumter, a Democrat from Passaic County who co-sponsored the bill, did say that "the privilege to participate in the election process is a constitutional right afforded every American regardless of background, race or status. "Every person of voting age should have the ability to cast their ballot without interference and without judgment of their personal history," she added. ([Politico]( Cuomo Says He's Not Running for President. 'Sources' Say He's Been Talking About It. Though Gov. Andrew Cuomo [all but endorsed]( Joe Biden back in April, he recently considered entering the presidential race himself, according to two sources who spoke with Newsday. "People in the [Democratic] party are beginning to wonder if we have the right candidate who can run against Donald Trump," one consultant who spoke with Cuomo told the paper, adding that their discussions revolved around, "Can we be ready, should we be ready?" Much of this reportedly happened in the early fall, when Biden started slumping in the polls following his September debate performance. Both sources who spoke with Cuomo said his interest in running for president died down again after Biden's poll numbers bounced back, following the October 15th debate. “It’s flattering on one hand," Cuomo said during a WRCN radio interview last week, referring to suggestions that he should run. "Part of it is because I’m governor of New York, and the most senior governor in the country just about. And I was in the president’s cabinet, et cetera. So, on paper, I can see why people would make that speculation. Also, we have done great things in this state." Cuomo, whose current term runs through 2022, has said he [plans to run for a fourth term]( as governor. ([Newsday]( Monserrate, Será Mary Altaffer/AP Hiram Monserrate, a former Democratic State Senator from Queens who was expelled from Albany for abusing his girlfriend — and then sentenced to prison for two years for stealing public money — is considering a run for State Assembly. On Tuesday, he filed paperwork to challenge Queens Democrat Jeffrion Aubry, one of the highest ranking lawmakers in the Assembly, in the 2020 primaries. He has not said yet whether he actually plans on running. But if he does, he'll likely be competitive, [writes Ross Barkan]( Within Queens politics, Monserrate is a complicated figure, both reviled and respected. His club, the East Elmhurst Corona Democratic Club, is regarded as one of the most active in the borough, having backed four successful district leader candidacies, [including his own](. Though Monserrate once threw the Senate into chaos by [briefly partnering with the Republicans]( he has presented himself as a populist, anti-machine progressive, effectively spearheading the first insurgent [judicial victory]( Queens has seen in several decades. In parts of East Elmhurst and Corona, especially among older voters who remember his days as an energetic elected official, Monserrate remains popular. That said, he's still a known domestic abuser and ex-convict with a recent history of losing. City Councilmember Francisco Moya, who won his seat in a primary against Monserrate two years ago, dismissed the idea that Monserrate could win this time. "A convicted domestic abuser and disgraced politician convicted of stealing taxpayer money wants to go after a man who is synonymous with the social justice movement in this state and who ushered in some of the most significant criminal justice reforms we’ve ever seen?" Moya said. "This challenge is a joke." Sondland: 'It Was a Quid Pro Quo' A central question in this impeachment inquiry has been, was there a quid pro quo, with President Trump demanding political favors from Ukraine? Today, we heard a resounding yes from U.S. Ambassador to the EU Gordon Sondland. Support WNYC + Gothamist Make a donation to support local, independent journalism. 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