New ‘Staten Island First’ Party Spawned by Democratic Borough President Candidate With Additional Reporting by Rachel Holiday Smith
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Clifford Michel/ THE CITY
Staten Island voters could see a new political party on their general election ballots: “Staten Island First,” THE CITY has learned.
Mark Murphy, the Staten Island Democratic Party-backed candidate for borough president, is collecting signatures with two other Democrats to run in the general election on his new independent ballot line whose name echoes the Trumpian “America First” motto. Murphy wouldn’t say directly whether he’ll wage an active third-party run if he loses the June primary, responding, “I am a Democrat. I always support Democrats.”
Former congressman Vito Fossella joins borough president race
Updated Mar 17, 2021;
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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. Former Congressman Vito Fossella announced during an interview on the John Catsimatidis radio show Tuesday that he will run for Staten Island borough president, and said he thinks he can “make the difference” for the borough.
“I was born and raised in Staten Island. I feel like the people of Staten Island always expected and deserved the strongest voice possible to represent their interest,” Fossella said during the interview. “We are not a group of folks who support defund the police. We want safer street and safer communities. We don’t want to keep the schools closed. We want our kids to learn and a clean, safe and healthy environment.
Election 2021: Immigrant and labor leader wants to be the next borough president
Updated Mar 08, 2021;
Posted Mar 08, 2021
Radhakrishna Mohan poses for a portrait photo. He is running for Staten Island Borough President in the 2021 election. (Courtesy: Mohan campaign)
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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. Radhakrishna Mohan immigrated to America in 1989, built a career in computer science while serving as a labor leader, and thinks he’s the right choice to be the next Staten Island Borough President.
In an interview with the Advance/SILive.com, Mohan, who ran for Congress in 2018 and lost to former Rep. Max Rose in the Democratic primary, said his experience as a labor leader and time working with community organizations give him the experience for the job.
Once Undocumented Immigrant & Now Attorney Announces BP Run In NYC s Most Conservative Borough
arrow Cesar Vargas at a naturalization ceremony. Cesar Vargas Twitter
Cesar Vargas remembers praying at a cathedral in Puebla, Mexico when he was five years old before embarking on a 1800-mile journey to the border town of Tijuana with his siblings and mother. He crossed with his family into the U.S. without legal papers, traveling to Brighton Beach in Brooklyn to live with Vargas’ older brothers who were teenagers at the time.
“Brighton Beach was a hub for new immigrants from Mexico, Latin America, Russia, South Asian communities where immigrants like me would feel welcomed. And I did,” Vargas recalled.
‘It’s time for bold leadership:’ Reservist who just earned citizenship announces BP run
Updated Feb 25, 2021;
Posted Feb 25, 2021
Borough president candidate Cesar Vargas poses for a photo outside the St. George Ferry Terminal. (Courtesy: Vargas campaign/Bri Elledge)
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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. Cesar Vargas came to this country with his family as a child, an undocumented immigrant. He just earned his citizenship earlier this month, and now he’s running to be Staten Island’s next borough president.
In a Wednesday interview with the Advance/SILive.com, Vargas, who arrived in the U.S. from Mexico when he was “five or six,” said that if elected he hopes to use his life experiences to better serve the people of Staten Island.