Jacobs puts his money on Bynoe in SD6

Daily Point

Dem chairman Jacobs’ personal message in State Senate primary

Political party leaders have different ways of leaning toward one primary candidate over another — even if it’s standard to keep some degree of official detachment until the nominee is selected.

These days state and Nassau County Democratic chairman Jay Jacobs is letting his own money talk a bit in Nassau County’s 6th Senate District. Jacobs hasn’t been out endorsing or campaigning for Nassau County Legis. Siela Bynoe, but as logged last weekend, he contributed $5,000 to her campaign committee.

Jacobs, with much fundraising experience, has long helped out the party’s campaigns with his personal funds. In this case, Bynoe is running against Assemb. Taylor Darling in a bid to succeed Sen. Kevin Thomas, who is vacating the seat he won six years ago.

Asked about Jacobs’ SD6 tilt, a veteran Democrat allied with him also noted to The Point that Jacobs backed Darling in 2018 when she pulled off a rare primary win as an insurgent against longtime incumbent Assemb. Earlene Hooper. Darling has held that seat since.

The dynamic of the Bynoe-Darling race is shaped by the fact that the district is considered Democratic terrain, so the primary winner is the presumed favorite in the general election.

That’s a very different scenario from the 7th Senate District, where Democrats Kim Keiserman and Brad Schwartz are vying for a chance to unseat Republican Sen. Jack Martins, who unseated Democratic incumbent Anna Kaplan in 2022.

For that race, Jacobs has made his preference well known since late March when he endorsed Keiserman. In congressional races, he’s been backing John Avlon against Nancy Goroff in the bid to take on Rep. Nick LaLota in the 1st Congressional District on the East End — as well as Westchester County Executive George Latimer against Rep. Jamaal Bowman in CD16.

There’s competitive spin in the broader fundraising picture for SD6. Darling told the website City and State: “I am grateful for the almost 800 contributions I have received with more than 400 being from local donors that can vote in this election.”

This year for the first time, state legislative candidates also compete for matching public funds. Bynoe spokesman David Chauvin told The Point on Thursday that “roughly four-fifths” of the funds she’s received “come from people within the district,” and Bynoe is reportedly poised to hit the legal maximum on matching funds.

Early voting has been underway in advance of Primary Day, which is Tuesday.

— Dan Janison dan.janison@newsday.com

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Reference Point

When the USMMA was in troubled waters decades ago

Nowadays, the Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point is in the news as it struggles to deal with increasing reports of sexual assaults on cadets. It was in the news nearly seven decades ago, too, as it struggled for its funding future.

Back in the 1950s, the academy was funded on a year-to-year basis. Its supporters noted that the other service academies for the Army, Navy and Air Force were “permanent” institutions that did not have to seek funding every year.

“This is not a local problem. It is of national importance,” Newsday’s editorial board wrote in a June 20, 1955 piece called “Senatorial Sorehead.”

That year, the House passed a bill to grant permanent status to Kings Point. And an overwhelming number of senators appeared ready to grant it passage as well. But one senator from Maine, Frederick G. Payne, was keeping the legislation bottled up in the Senate Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce. Newsday’s board quoted an editorial supporting Kings Point that appeared in The Denver Post, which had covered the permanent status approval process for the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.

“Payne is sore because the budget bureau and the maritime administration agreed to cut out a $600,000 appropriation to four state schools, including one at Castine, Maine, for maritime training. Now he would waste $50,000 on an unnecessary ‘study’ of the Kings Point institution which has operated in full limelight for nearly 15 years,” the Denver Post wrote.

Payne's block didn’t last long. In 1956, Congress amended the Merchant Marine Act of 1936 and gave Kings Point permanent status.

— Michael Dobie michael.dobie@newsday.com, Amanda Fiscina-Wells amanda.fiscina-wells@newsday.com

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