The national races aren't the only ones with high drama
While sweating the presidential stuff you should keep an eye on your local races too.
Democrats Compete to Challenge Senator
By JONATHAN P. HICKS
For a quarter-century, State Senator Olga A. Mendez has held a seat that was considered among the safest in the Legislature. Election after election, she won handily, usually with very little in the way of campaign money or competition.
But this year, a very different scene is playing out in Ms. Mendez's district, the 28th, which includes much of East Harlem and sections of the South Bronx. Two years ago, Ms. Mendez changed her registration from Democrat to Republican. And with that change has come intense competition from Democrats, who hope to capture that seat as part of their long-term strategy to control the Senate.
The election, on Nov. 2, is shaping up to be one of the most hard-fought local races this year because the district is overwhelmingly Democratic, and the Republicans are eager to hold on to the seat. But even now, there is intense competition leading up to the Democratic primary on Sept. 14 between the two main candidates seeking to run against Ms. Mendez: City Councilman José Marco Serrano and a former state assemblyman, Nelson Antonio Denis. A third candidate in the Democratic primary, Agustin Alamo Estrada, a retired teacher, has run unsuccessfully in a number of elections.
Mr. Serrano, 32, is the son of United States Representative José E. Serrano, one of the best-known political names in the Bronx, who has won re-election with overwhelming margins. The younger Mr. Serrano was elected to the Council in 2001 and agreed to run in the primary after several Democratic officials told him they thought he had the best chance of defeating Ms. Mendez, he said.
Mr. Denis, 49, a graduate of Harvard University and Yale Law School, represented East Harlem in the Assembly from 1997 to 2001, leaving after he was defeated in the primary by Adam Clayton Powell IV. Since then he has spent much of his time working on an independent film, "Vote for Me!'' A political satire that includes a cameo appearance by Senator Mendez, it was shown last year at the TriBeCa Film Festival.
Whatever Mr. Denis's feelings about Ms. Mendez, he is far less inclined to talk about them than about his irritation with Mr. Serrano's candidacy.
