Judith Johnson, Longtime Hudson Valley Educator, Dies Judith Johnson, Longtime Hudson Valley Educator, Dies
Judith Johnson, Longtime Hudson Valley Educator, Dies Former New York State Education Department Regent and prominent Hudson Valley educator Judith Johnson has died. During her career, Johnson, 80, spent time serving as the Deputy Assistant Secretary and Acting Assistant Secretary for Education under President Bill Clinton and spent decades educating students in the Hudson Valley. Johnson spent 10 years as the Schools Superintendent in Peekskill, becoming the first African American to hold that post. She also took over at the helm in Mount Vernon in an interim position in 2012 as the district underwent wholesale changes and sought a permanent …
DV Plus - Westchester, NY
New Poll: Cuomo's Political Paradox New Poll: Cuomo's Political Paradox
New Poll: Cuomo's Political Paradox While Gov. Andrew Cuomo's popularity continues to tank, most New Yorkers think the Democrat has made the state a better place to live, according to a new poll. New Yorkers, by a 51 to 39 percent margin, say the governor from New Castle has made New York a better place to live in his nine years as governor, according to a new Siena College Poll of registered New York State voters released on Tuesday, Aug. 6. At least part of the credit goes to the General Assembly's Democratic majority: Poll respondents said the recent state legislative session put New York "on the right track." Among other…
Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano Wins Three-Way Democratic Primary Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano Wins Three-Way Democratic Primary
Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano Wins Three-Way Democratic Primary Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano easily won Tuesday's Democratic Party primary election, according to unofficial vote returns. The two-term mayor declared victory shortly after 10 p.m. on Tuesday, June 25 in the three-way Democratic primary race. With about 70 percent the votes counted, Spano led with 75 percent. Spano defeated attorney Karen Beltran, with 18 percent of the votes, and community activist Ivy Reeves, with 8 percent, according to unofficial returns from the county Board of Elections. Beltran is a longtime Yonkers resident who immigrated to the U.S. from Colombia when she was sev…
Ocasio-Cortez Ally Launches Primary Challenge Against Eliot Engel Ocasio-Cortez Ally Launches Primary Challenge Against Eliot Engel
Ocasio-Cortez Ally Launches Primary Challenge Against Eliot Engel Justice Democrats, the progressive group that backed U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's upset over incumbent Congressman Joe Crowley last year, is now supporting a 2020 primary challenge against another senior Democrat. In a campaign to unseat 30-year U.S. Rep. Eliot Engel, the group said it supports Jamaal Bowman, a middle school principal and former teacher in the Bronx. New York’s 16th Congressional District includes southern Westchester and part of the Bronx.  Bowman, 42, announced his campaign via this video on Tuesday. He’s running on a political platform centered on inve…
DV Plus - Fairfield, CT
Odds Are 50-50 That Legal Sports Betting Is Coming Soon Odds Are 50-50 That Legal Sports Betting Is Coming Soon
Odds Are 50-50 That Legal Sports Betting Is Coming Soon Sports betting is no longer unique to Las Vegas. After the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a federal ban that prohibited states from regulating sports wagering, eight states including New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island legalized it. Now, 23 other states including Connecticut and New York have legislation pending that would legalize sports betting -- which has become a $400 billion-a-year industry.  Some legislators see legalization as a way to circumvent the gambling black market while reducing state budget deficits.  Sports betting was not included as a proposed s…
Oz Griebel Expected To Play 'Spoiler' Role In Next Week's Governor Election Oz Griebel Expected To Play 'Spoiler' Role In Next Week's Governor Election
Oz Griebel Expected To Play 'Spoiler' Role In Next Week's Governor Election This story has been updated. With Ned Lamont and Bob Stefanowski nearly deadlocked in recent public opinion polls, a third candidate is expected to play a key roll in the Nov. 6 election. Political observers are saying that Richard "Oz" Griebel, a former Republican running as an independent could sift decisive votes away from the two major party candidates. University experts, pollers and party officials predict Griebel could receive at least 6 to 7 percent of the statewide vote -- especially in Hartford County -- and more likely harm Stefanowski of Madison than Lamont of Greenwi…
Bloomberg Rejoins Democratic Party: Who Would You Vote For If He Ran Against Trump? Bloomberg Rejoins Democratic Party: Who Would You Vote For If He Ran Against Trump?
Bloomberg Rejoins Democratic Party: Who Would You Vote For If He Ran Against Trump? The race for president in 2020 is getting even more interesting. Former three-term New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who owns an estate in Westchester, announced on Instagram and Twitter that he has re-registered as a Democrat, setting up what many political observers anticipate may become a challenge to Republican President Donald Trump, a native New Yorker. Bloomberg's decision was posted here on Instagram. The announcement quickly spread like wildfire among international media outlets on Wednesday, Oct. 10, including an early scoop, of course, by Bloomberg News in this report:  Blo…
County Taxpayers Being Unfairly Targeted, Schumer Says In Westchester Visit County Taxpayers Being Unfairly Targeted, Schumer Says In Westchester Visit
County Taxpayers Being Unfairly Targeted, Schumer Says In Westchester Visit Standing with Westchester County homeowners, U.S. Senate Minority Leader Charles "Chuck" Schumer called on the IRS on Monday, June 25 to treat fairly a new state law aimed at reducing taxes.  In a letter to the IRS' acting commissioner, Schumer asked the federal agency to support the state law, which enables cash-strapped New Yorkers to ease the tax burden caused by a federal tax bill that capped State and Local Tax (SALT) deductions at $10,000.  New York tax law would allow residents to receive more tax credits for charitable donations to help reduce state and federal taxes.  Sc…
East Ramapo Taxpayers Defeat School Budget Revote East Ramapo Taxpayers Defeat School Budget Revote
East Ramapo Taxpayers Defeat School Budget Revote East Ramapo Central School District voters rejected a second attempt to pass a proposed operating budget for the next school year.on Tuesday, June 19.According to early, unofficial results, 2,509 East Ramapo voters supported the school budget proposal, while 3,137 were against it. Because the $273.3 million budget vote failed again, school officials now must cut $4.3 million in spending. That means the East Ramapo Board of Education may have to eliminate summer school, athletics, extracurricular activities, electives and an undisclosed number of staff. After the school district's $237.3 mil…
Tuckahoe Voters Approve Near $10M School Capital Bond Project Tuckahoe Voters Approve Near $10M School Capital Bond Project
Tuckahoe Voters Approve Near $10M School Capital Bond Project Tuckahoe voters overwhelmingly approved a near $10 million capital bond referendum that will “address the district’s most basic needs for additional classrooms, safety and security upgrades, and high priority infrastructure repairs.” With a tally of 836 “yes” votes against just 348 “no” votes, the community approved the $9,987,000 capital bond project that includes the addition of a second story at William E. Cottle Elementary School, construction of a new security vestibule at Cottle and a turf field replacement and communication system replacement at the school. The bond is expected to co…