Cuomo, Conway to talk 'elezioni presidenziali'

Daily Point

Former gov, Trump adviser to discuss Italian values

A boy from Queens and a girl from New Jersey, each with some knowledge of politics, will be talking about the presidential election Saturday as the headliners at a luncheon of the National Italian American Foundation in Washington, D.C.

That would be Kellyanne Conway — whose mother’s maiden name is DiNatale — and Andrew Cuomo, who’s a full breed. It’s the latest out-and-about venture for the former governor who’s inching closer to a run for New York City mayor. And it’s one where he again can mingle with a very friendly audience. Cuomo was at the Columbus Citizens Foundation dinner Oct. 13 and he will also attend the black-tie gala of the National Italian American Foundation later Saturday evening.

"What more compelling speakers can you have on the upcoming election than Andrew Cuomo and Kellyanne Conway," said John Calvelli, executive vice chair of the cultural organization and the luncheon’s moderator.

Calvelli said the event will be a question-and-answer format and not a debate between the former New York governor and the former counselor to Donald Trump. He plans on asking both "to explain the values they learned from their Italian heritage, how those values impact your politics, and how does the presidential candidate you support reflect those values."

It costs $125 a ticket for those insights and it funds the foundation’s scholarship programs.

The session is likely to be a trip down memory lane, too. According to U.S. News & World Report, Conway was drawn to the Democratic Party by Mario Cuomo and Geraldine Ferraro, "but was lured to the GOP by Ronald Reagan." It’s a fair assumption that Mario Cuomo also played a role in drawing his son into Democratic politics.

And taking a page from the "Only in New York folks" vein, Conway’s first work for Trump was in 2013 when he was considering a gubernatorial challenge to Andrew Cuomo, then seeking a second term. Conway’s survey found Trump would lose his Albany bid by 35 points to Cuomo and the effort was abandoned.

Two years later, Trump descended on the golden escalator.

— Rita Ciolli rita.ciolli@newsday.com

Pencil Point

Decision time

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Final Point

GOP Assembly candidate's residency still raises questions

The Nassau County Republican Party is pushing back on claims by Democratic Assemb. Gina Sillitti’s campaign that her opponent, Daniel Norber, didn’t meet the residency rules for a state Assembly seat, which, according to the state Constitution, require anyone elected during a redistricting year to live in the county for 12 months prior to Election Day.

Party spokesman Mike Deery provided The Point with a lease for a house in Great Neck dated Oct. 1, 2023, along with renters insurance documentation, both in Norber’s name.

Deery also provided a Great Neck Public Schools certification of residency in which Norber certified that the Great Neck address was his legal residence. That certification, which was notarized, was dated Oct. 20, 2023.

"I think obviously the records speak for themselves," Deery told The Point Thursday. "The candidate meets all of the requirements of residency and all of his lease agreements and his residency certifications are clear and irrefutable. It’s obviously just a sad tactic of a desperate campaign on the part of his opponent."

Deery told The Point that Norber’s landlord allowed him to move in before his lease start date, so Norber moved into the house on Sept. 15.

But Sillitti said the documentation did not resolve the matter, which arose because of a social media post that showed Norber voting last year in Queens.

"My opponent continues to be a mystery," Sillitti told The Point. "When I saw the social media post, I thought it was important to be open and transparent which is something this district deserves and something we’ve not always had."

Election lawyer Keith Corbett, who heads the political law practice group at Harris Beach, told The Point that the state’s definition of residency involves "continuous legitimate physical contacts with a location." That’s typically proved through residency documentation, utility and phone bills, school records, and other documents.

Norber’s claim of residency in Great Neck in the fall of 2023 raised another question: Why did he vote in Queens on Nov. 3, as his social media post showed, when he had already moved to Nassau County?

When someone moves and changes residency, New York law requires them to vote in the district of their new home even if there is no time to change their voter registration, by affidavit or provisional ballot if necessary at their new polling place, or by going to court and getting a judge to allow them to vote at their new polling place.

"The election law has provisions in place so that people, when they do move after the time frame to change [registration], can still exercise their constitutional right to vote," Corbett said.

"Based upon the information provided, this candidate may have gone from a residency issue to a complete voter fraud issue," he said.

Corbett recently served as the lead attorney in the challenge to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s residency — a case that ultimately led to Kennedy being blocked from appearing on the New York ballot.

Norber did not return a call and text seeking comment. But Sillitti said those "outstanding questions" deserve answers.

"Whether he voted properly, whether he lives where he says he lives, these are basic things people need to know," she said.

But Deery told The Point that since it was too late for Norber to change his registration, he chose to vote at his previous polling place in Queens.

"If it was too late to change his address that’s what people do," Deery said. "Our attorneys say that’s permissible."

— Randi F. Marshall randi.marshall@newsday.com

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