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Party Bosses' Offspring Seek Assembly Seat
Friedman vs. Rivera

By HEATHER HADDON

In the race for the 80th Assembly District seat, there's a lot riding on a name -  make that two names. 

In a battle of some very well connected progeny, the race pits the daughter of current Bronx Democratic Party boss Assemblyman Jose Rivera against the son of former leader George Friedman. Throw in community activist Joseph Thompson and Anthony Chiofalo, an attorney, and you have the makings of an actual competitive campaign. 

Naomi Rivera was the first to announce her bid for the seat now held by Jeff Klein, who is running for State Senate. 

Rivera and Friedman both stand on their fathers' shoulders.

"I'm not going to lie, my father has connections in the community that will be helpful for me," said Anthony Friedman, 34. In addition to his tenure as the Bronx Democratic Party Chair from 1986 to 1994, the elder Friedman was a State Supreme Court judge. 

But whether the Friedman name can compete with the present-day clout of Assemblyman Rivera, who recently compared his family's political dynasty to the Kennedys, is another question.  Rivera successfully steered his son, Joel, to the powerful City Council Majority Leader position when he was 23. Naomi Rivera, 41, most recently worked at the Bronx Board of Elections.

Before joining the Board in 2003, Rivera directed special events at the borough president's office. She has also worked on a number of local campaigns. "I understand how government works," said Rivera in her first public interview. "I come from a family with a strong tradition of public service, and I realized it was a wonderful time to make a next step." 

Rivera seemed to be placing some distance between herself and her father, who she said plays no real role in her campaign. "I'm just a mother from the district who is concerned about the neighborhood," said Rivera, who has a 4-year-old son. 

But Rivera's campaign team brims with the politically connected. Her staff, who say they are volunteers, includes Ellie Jurado, the campaign manager for Fernando Ferrer's 2000 mayoral bid; Doris Quinones, director of the Bronx Tourism Council; and Bob Nolan, the borough president's budget director. 

Rivera defended her connection to the district, which mostly covers the Pelham Parkway area with a dash of Norwood, Bedford Park and Van Cortlandt Village thrown in. "I shop in the district. I take my son to the park," said Rivera, who grew up on Long Island, but now lives in Morris Park. "I want to make sure my son is raised in a safe and clean environment." 

The younger Friedman, former director of the Pelham Senior Center, thinks he trumps Rivera in that arena. "I believe my experience has a broader reach," said Friedman, a longtime Mosholu Montefiore Community Center volunteer and former employee. "I have no idea what she [Rivera] has done in the community."

Surprisingly, Rivera, Friedman and Thompson have all come out against building the filtration plant in the Bronx, even though Assemblyman Rivera led the charge among Bronx Democrats to place it in Van Cortlandt Park. "We need to explore Eastview more," said candidate Rivera about the alternative plant site in Westchester. "It's not a done deal."

Rivera said she would support lawsuits against the plant, and said she will explore whether less capital funds have flowed to Bronx parks since the city promised  $243 million in park improvements to site it locally. Asked if her father now shares her position, Rivera would only say, "We've discussed it."

Friedman, a Little League coach who uses Shandler Recreation Area in the park, which is next to the plant site, said that the project would be "a disaster." He also supports litigation against it. 

Friedman grew up locally, attended Lehman College, and now lives on Sedgwick Avenue with his wife. His father manages his campaign, and they are now planning a fund-raiser. "I'm definitely relying on my father's expertise," he said.

But that might not be enough, given Rivera's name recognition and the changing 
demographics of the area. While nearly 60 percent of the district was white and 25 percent Hispanic in 1992, those groups were almost dead-even in 2002. That could be to the loss of Friedman, who is white, and Rivera's gain. 

"The district has changed so much," said Norman Adler, a veteran political consultant not affiliated with any of the candidates. When asked if the Friedman name still carried weight, he offered a hesitant "maybe."

As for Thompson, who is black, Adler thought he would struggle to raise enough money. "He's got a good story, but the question is if he can let people know about it," he said. 

While there are 36,477 registered Democrats in the district as of last April, only the most dedicated voters tend to vote in primaries, according to Adler. "One has to imagine, with Rivera's pedigree, she will have some advantage," he said. 

Ed. note: The Norwood News profiled candidate Joseph Thompson in its previous issue. That article can be read on our Web site. 

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