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The race for the New York State Assembly is gathering momentum with several aspirants, among them three Indian Americans, announcing their candidacy for the Sept. 10 primaries.
Rene Lobo, a familiar face for many in the South Asian community, is the latest to announce her candidacy. A TV anchor and India Day Parade emcee for several years, Lobo, a Republican candidate and an employee of the Queens District Attorneys office, is running for the District 28 Assembly seat, which covers Rego Park, Elmhurst and Forest Hills areas.
Lobo told News India-Times that she was aware of the tough job ahead, But I have a very good chance of winning. She cited two main reasons for her confidence. One is that several registered Republican voters reside in the constituency, which is the outcome of a recent redistricting. And the second: Governor George Pataki and I will be campaigning together, which will help me win.
Describing herself, Lobo said, You can call me a liberal Republican with the conservative ideals of a Democrat.
While Lobo has only one opponent, a Democrat, John (Prakash) Albert currently faces five rivals in New Yorks 22nd District (Flushing). They include Queens librarian and Democrat, Ethel Chen, who is hoping she will be fourth time lucky after three unsuccessful bids. Also in the fray are Democratic county designee Barry Grodenchick, businessman Jimmy Meng, Evergreen Chou of the Green Party and Democrat Richard Jannaccio.
At a press conference organized by Danniel Maio, a Republican candidate from Manhattan, to introduce this years Asian candidates, Chen, who is still unhappy with the Democratic Party supporting a machine-picked candidate (Liu) last year, told News India-Times that she was confident she would win this time.
Albert claimed My chances of winning are as good as the rest in the race. He said he was a young candidate, with the freshest ideas and best experience as a lobbyist in Albany. Another promising candidate is the Indo-Guyanese Dr. Taj Rajkumar, a Democrat who is running for Assembly from District 31 (Richmond Hill), which has a concentration of Indian and Indo-Caribbean voters.
Currently, the priority of these candidates of Indian origin is to make their presence known in their districts while raising funds to battle heavyweights in the political arena. As these candidates get ready for the primaries, another Indian-American, Uma Sengupta, has been shortlisted as a candidate for a Democratic Party position.
Rene Lobo, a familiar face for many in the South Asian community, is the latest to announce her candidacy. A TV anchor and India Day Parade emcee for several years, Lobo, a Republican candidate and an employee of the Queens District Attorneys office, is running for the District 28 Assembly seat, which covers Rego Park, Elmhurst and Forest Hills areas.
Lobo told News India-Times that she was aware of the tough job ahead, But I have a very good chance of winning. She cited two main reasons for her confidence. One is that several registered Republican voters reside in the constituency, which is the outcome of a recent redistricting. And the second: Governor George Pataki and I will be campaigning together, which will help me win.
Describing herself, Lobo said, You can call me a liberal Republican with the conservative ideals of a Democrat.
While Lobo has only one opponent, a Democrat, John (Prakash) Albert currently faces five rivals in New Yorks 22nd District (Flushing). They include Queens librarian and Democrat, Ethel Chen, who is hoping she will be fourth time lucky after three unsuccessful bids. Also in the fray are Democratic county designee Barry Grodenchick, businessman Jimmy Meng, Evergreen Chou of the Green Party and Democrat Richard Jannaccio.
At a press conference organized by Danniel Maio, a Republican candidate from Manhattan, to introduce this years Asian candidates, Chen, who is still unhappy with the Democratic Party supporting a machine-picked candidate (Liu) last year, told News India-Times that she was confident she would win this time.
Albert claimed My chances of winning are as good as the rest in the race. He said he was a young candidate, with the freshest ideas and best experience as a lobbyist in Albany. Another promising candidate is the Indo-Guyanese Dr. Taj Rajkumar, a Democrat who is running for Assembly from District 31 (Richmond Hill), which has a concentration of Indian and Indo-Caribbean voters.
Currently, the priority of these candidates of Indian origin is to make their presence known in their districts while raising funds to battle heavyweights in the political arena. As these candidates get ready for the primaries, another Indian-American, Uma Sengupta, has been shortlisted as a candidate for a Democratic Party position.