Public Policy Poll Shows Richard Hanna, Mohawk Valley Republican, Losing To Generic Democrat by 8 Points, Gap Widens to 15 Points for Voters 18-29 Brindisi, Utica Democrat, Fights For Students in State Assembly by Leading Statewide Effort for CTE Diplomas, School Funding, and Job Creation in the Mohawk Valley CDNY President Colin Crowley: We Need an Advocate Like Anthony Brindisi Fighting for Young New Yorkers in Washington
(Utica, N.Y) The College Democrats of New York announced today, on the heels of a new Public Policy Poll showing incumbent Representative Richard Hanna (R-Barneveld) losing dramatically to a generic Democrat, they will urge New York State Assembly Member Anthony Brindisi to run for New York’s 22nd congressional district in 2014.
“Republicans in Congress have stymied the progressive priorities young New Yorkers deeply care about,” said Colin Crowley, President of the College Democrats of New York. “New York’s young people need representatives who will not be backbenchers, relegating leadership to tea party extremists like Ted Cruz and Eric Cantor, but advocates with the courage to stand up for their constituents need: affordable higher education, middle class jobs, and the funding our schools need. Anthony Brindisi is an attorney, an advocate, and the leader New York’s young people need in Washington.”
A new survey of voters in New York’s 22nd congressional district released by Public Policy Polling (PPP) shows Hanna losing to a generic Democrat by 8 points once voters were asked about the recent 16-day government shut down and near-default. The largest disparity in the poll was among young voters, aged 18 to 29, where the incumbent Hanna only garnered the support of only 32% of young voters.
Assemblyman Anthony Brindisi, first elected to the legislature in 2011, has a strong record of fighting for New York’s young people. Assemblyman Brindisi understands the importance of giving young people the tools they need to succeed in high school so they can attend colleges better prepared for the high-tech careers of tomorrow. Brindisi organized a statewide push to overhaul the New York State Board of Regents allowing students to study for Career Technical Education diplomas which would dramatically decrease dropout rates and infuse companies with students who are prepared for 21st century jobs in engineering, welding, machining and more technical fields.
Learning from his experience as a member of the Utica City School District Board of Education, Assemblyman Brindisi advocated for school district funding in one of New York State’s neediest districts and secured extra funds to give children the education they deserve, not just the one the district can afford.
Brindisi understands young people need a good education and good jobs waiting for them after they graduate. This is why he spearheaded an effort to bring a major Nanotech development to the Utica area and developed innovative partnerships between downstate food entrepreneurs and upstate manufacturers.
Rep. Hanna voted for a Republican continuing resolution that tied funding of the federal government to controversial changes in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act which negatively affected young people across the country. Tea Party plans, like the one Hanna supported, prolonged the government shutdown costing the U.S. economy billions of dollars and jeopardizing the economic recovery.
Congressional dysfunction, fueled by tea party extremists, caused interest rates for federally subsidized student loans to double on July 1, 2013, increasing uncertainty for New York families already struggling to afford skyrocketing tuition rates.
