EdVANTAGE Blog

Over the weekend New York State United Teachers decided to endorse U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand’s candidacy to win election to fill out the remaining two years in Hillary Clinton’s term.

The New York Daily News reported that, “The union will formally announce today what its president, Dick Iannuzzi, called an ‘unquestionably unusual’ endorsement of Gillibrand that is coming ‘unquestionably early in the process.’”

In contrast, in 1998, NYSUT waited until after the Democratic primary to endorse Chuck Schumer in his ultimately successful race to unseat then Senator Alfonse D’Amato.

At the time her appointment was announced it was thought that she would face serious primary competition for the Democratic nomination to hold the seat.  But two potential challengers from the state’s U.S. House delegation have since disavowed interest and 11 members of that delegation have now endorsed her.

Reportedly, the Obama White House was involved in dissuading one potential challenger.

The Daily News explained, “Iannuzzi said he’s less concerned about Gillibrand’s facing primary opponents than he is about the general election opposition she might come up against, noting a freshman lawmaker’s first election – particularly when she’s defending a seat she didn’t run for in the first place – is generally when she’s at her most vulnerable.”

As we noted once before, 2010 shapes up as an awfully expensive political year, with all four statewide state government offices up, as well as all state legislative seats, the entire U.S. House of Representatives, and both U.S. Senate seats (Senator Schumer’s second six-year term is coming to an end).

Also, whoever wins the seat now held by Senator Gillibrand will have to immediately begin fund-raising for a re-election run to win a full six-year term in 2012.