The Central Brooklyn State Senate Democratic Primary race between incumbent Sen. Jesse Hamilton and challenger Zellnor Myrie is getting red-hot – and that’s just after the year’s first funding deadline ended last week.
The wide-ranging district includes Brownsville, Crown Heights, East Flatbush, Gowanus, Park Slope, Prospect Heights, Prospect Lefferts Gardens, South Slope, and Sunset Park.
Hamilton is a member of the senate’s Independent Democratic Conference (IDC), which has a majority coalition with the Republicans in the Senate. His base is the black and immigrant parts of the district, where his work for constituents is well-regarded.
Myrie is the darling of the Mayor Bill de Blasio progressive Democratic wing of the party. His base is the liberal white part of the district, where the highly partisan constituents take great umbrage at the IDC, who although holding mainstream Democratic Party values, work across the aisle in a bipartisan fashion.
According to the State Board of Elections first round of campaign fundraising for the year, which ended last week, Myrie raised a healthy $93,577 ($88,149 after expenses). Hamilton raised almost $100,000 this cycle to give him a total of nearly $120,000.
Myrie was quick to praise his early fundraising success to his commitment to traditional Democratic Party values, a point he cited since first announcing his candidacy last October when denouncing Hamilton’s membership in the IDC.
“This is a people driven campaign. This early success shows that this community is ready for a real Democrat to bring real change. I am the only real Democrat in this race who can say they will fight back against the Trump-Democrats in Albany and truly represent working families and the middle class residents of central Brooklyn when elected,” said Myrie.
However, Myrie has a controversial political background starting with his previous ties as a former Legislative Director to City Councilman Fernando Cabrera (D-Bronx), who is a former Republican, that is now considered one of the more conservative members of the liberal City Council.
In 2014, as reported in The Observer, Cabrera was found to have ties to The Family Research Council (FRC), a right-leaning organization that was labeled a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law center. Additionally, Cabrera also participated in a 2012 FRC event, that included Republican presidential hopeful Rick Santorum at the time.
According to a source close to Hamilton, Myrie at a recent campaign meeting, verbally admitted that he worked for Cabrera knowing he held socially conservative views and was grateful for the opportunity to learn from the Bronx lawmakers.
Myrie is also hoping to get support from Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke (D-Crown Heights, Flatbush, Sheepshead Bay) but is still waiting to “see what happens,” according to sources inside Hamilton’s campaign.
Hamilton first assumed office in 2015 having run unopposed in 2014, winning the Democratic Party primary election to represent District 20 in the State Senate, which had been vacant since Borough President Eric L. Adams resigned to be sworn in as Brooklyn’s Borough President in 2013.
To date Hamilton has been crucial in passing key legislation including the Raise The Age Bill; expanding The Campus, a technology, wellness, entrepreneurship and cultural program to Brooklyn middle school students in Brownsville; as well as pushing for Black History lessons in schools across the borough.
