As IPR previously reported, Howie Hawkins, a co-founder of the Green Party, is running a serious candidacy for a seat on the Syracuse City Council. Here’s coverage from the Syracuse Post-Standard:
After 18 previous campaigns for office, including a run for governor last year that got him 59,000 votes, Howie Hawkins has plenty of name recognition in Syracuse, where he is running this year for city council.
But Hawkins, a Green Party candidate, is running against a Democrat, Khalid Bey, in an overwhelmingly Democratic area. …
Bey, 40, of 217 W. Kennedy St., said he does not underestimate Hawkins, who has “excellent name recognition compared with me.” …
Hawkins promises to sponsor resolutions asking the state to reform the tax code to take more from the wealthy and to share more revenues with cities. In addition, Syracuse should consider a “commuter tax” of 0.4 percent on the income of suburbanites who work in the city, Hawkins said. The new tax would require state approval.
To promote job development, Hawkins proposes a “community hiring hall” where contractors working on publicly funded projects could hire local and minority workers. He advocates establishing a municipal development bank to provide financing for local cooperative businesses.
Hawkins appears to be a serious candidate for this seat. In 2009, he ran for this same seat and garnered 41% of the vote against an incumbent. Meanwhile, Hawkins’ opponent, Khalid Bey, won only 11% of the Democratic primary vote the last time he ran for this seat, in 2005. Both candidates have raised similar amounts of money: $7,729 for Bey, $5,872 for Hawkins. Meanwhile, Hawkins’ gubernatorial run in 2010 won enough votes to gain the Green Party automatic ballot status in New York State for the first time.
The general election for Syracuse City Council is in November.