{"id":21119,"date":"2026-04-09T21:31:55","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T21:31:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/the-enduring-influence-of-al-sharpton\/"},"modified":"2026-04-09T21:31:55","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T21:31:55","slug":"the-enduring-influence-of-al-sharpton","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/the-enduring-influence-of-al-sharpton\/","title":{"rendered":"The enduring influence of Al Sharpton"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"The<\/p>\n

PILGRIMAGE:<\/b> The biggest names in politics are flying in from around the country to meet the Rev. Al Sharpton.<\/p>\n

Governors Wes Moore from Maryland and JB Pritzker from Illinois and Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) spoke with him today. Yesterday was Pennsylvania’s Gov. Josh Shapiro. Still up is former Vice President Kamala Harris, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.).<\/p>\n

These potential 2028 presidential hopefuls \u2014 in town for the 35th convention of Sharpton\u2019s National Action Network \u2014 know that one thing that\u2019s true in New York extends to the whole country.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you want to go somewhere in the City of New York, in anything, whatever your profession is, you\u2019ve got to come to the Dr. Rev. Al Sharpton,\u201d Harlem Assemblymember Jordan Wright said.<\/p>\n

Sharpton is spending the week basking in that clout. Of course, it wasn\u2019t always this way. Former mayors Ed Koch and Rudy Giuliani viewed him as a chaos agent and enemy. Now, the who\u2019s-who of national and local politics are elbowing their way to see and be seen at his four-day convention.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey’re showing up because he deserves the respect of everyone in this country,\u201d Gov. Kathy Hochul told Playbook. \u201cHe’s been a close adviser a long time. I call him up. And in fact, I spoke to him the day I found out I was going to be governor, watching it on television. I called him up, and he said, \u2018I’ll pray for you.\u2019 I got down on my knees, and I prayed myself for wisdom and for justice.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sharpton\u2019s influence, for instance, was on full display in New York last year when the field of mayoral candidates trekked to his House of Justice in Harlem \u2014 which will soon be relocated<\/a> \u2014 to show deference as they aimed for City Hall. There, Sharpton spoke positively about Andrew Cuomo during the primary and even chided then-mayoral-candidate Zohran Mamdani for not endorsing former Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, a Black woman, in a high enough spot on his ranked-choice ballot.<\/p>\n

\u201cSomehow that politics ain\u2019t progressive to me,\u201d Sharpton said nine days before the primary.<\/p>\n

Still, Mamdani chose to visit Sharpton at the House of Justice in his first public appearance after his win. That morning, Sharpton took Mamdani\u2019s hand and raised it into the air<\/a>, as if declaring him the winner by knockout in a boxing match.<\/p>\n

Last week, Sharpton raised eyebrows when he told our colleagues in Washington he thinks Harris deserves a second look<\/a> as a presidential candidate, attempting to thread the needle for Harris the same way he had for Adrienne Adams.<\/p>\n

He clarified \u2014 and defended \u2014 those comments while speaking with us Wednesday night.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don’t know if she’s gonna run, but I see her [facing] a lot of sexism and racism,\u201d Sharpton said. \u201cDon’t dismiss her. Let her decide what she’s going to do. She got more votes than any presidential candidate in history, other than Donald Trump. She ought to be acknowledged for that.\u201d \u2014 Jason Beeferman<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

From the Capitol<\/h3>\n

\"New<\/p>\n

NOTHING IS OVER: <\/b>State workers earned $1.6 billion in overtime in 2025, a 22.7 percent increase from the prior year, according to a report released Thursday morning by Comptroller Tom DiNapoli’s office.<\/p>\n

The findings come as unions are pressing to expand retirement benefits in the Tier 6 pension category \u2014 changes that would cost state and local governments up to $1.5 billion a year.<\/p>\n

“State agencies need to carefully monitor overtime to ensure that its use is justified and that state services are provided safely and effectively,” the overtime report found. “The use of overtime can have a substantial impact on long-term pension costs.”<\/p>\n

Read more from Blue Light News Pro\u2019s Nick Reisman.<\/i><\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

PARTY RAIDS: <\/b>Progressives in the Hudson Valley seem to have avoided the party raiding that\u2019s been the norm in that corner of the state \u2014 but one candidate in Saratoga County is raising eyebrows.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s become increasingly common<\/a> for allies of major party candidates to manipulate minor party nominations. Most prominently, a former Republican won the 2024 Working Families Party\u2019s primary in Rep. Mike Lawler\u2019s district after being supported by people who joined the WFP<\/a> days before the deadline. That ensured the left would split its vote.<\/p>\n

A comparable situation in area congressional or state legislative districts doesn\u2019t appear to exist this year. The only candidate who submitted petitions to challenge Lawler on a minor line was the WFP-backed Democrat Effie Phillips-Staley.<\/p>\n

Still, there was<\/i> a curious registration in the Saratoga-area district held by Democratic Assemblymember Carrie Woerner.<\/p>\n

The only candidate who submitted for the WFP line in that district was a Thomas Kenny. Attempts to figure out just who he is weren\u2019t immediately successful \u2014 as of January, nobody with that name was registered to vote in that corner of the state. Woerner\u2019s campaign believes he might have been a Conservative until recently, possibly living elsewhere.<\/p>\n

There have been some electoral oddities in the county in the past. Dozens of individuals connected to the Saratoga Springs Police Department switched their registration from the Republican or Conservative Parties to the WFP in 2021, forcing a primary against the Democratic supervisor.<\/p>\n

Saratoga GOP Chair Joe Suhrada said he didn\u2019t know anything about the Kenny candidacy.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know him and I\u2019m not sure who he is,\u201d Suhrada said. He theorized the candidate \u2014 unknown to Democrats and the WFP alike \u2014 might be a leftist. \u201cThere are so many people who decry the Democrats as supposedly not standing up to Trump enough \u2026 That could be the case here.\u201d \u2014 Bill Mahoney<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

FROM THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL<\/h3>\n

\"Peter<\/p>\n

CALLING IT QUITS: <\/b>Just hours before tonight\u2019s Democratic debate<\/a> to take on Lawler in NY-17, tech executive and local government official Peter Chatzky ended his bid. Chatzky, who loaned himself a whopping $5 million, was set to take the stage with Army veteran Cait Conley, Rockland County Legislator Beth Davidson and Phillips-Staley.<\/p>\n

In a statement<\/a>, Chatzky criticized the \u201cmachinery of the Democratic party\u201d and said that if he continued his campaign, \u201cthe party establishment and my competitors would need to spend significant effort and money to defeat me, resources that would be better used to defeat Mike Lawler.\u201d<\/p>\n

Chatzky had been vying to claim the progressive lane, which Working Families Party-backed Phillips-Staley is also pushing for. Last month, Phillips-Staley was the only candidate to call on Chatzky to drop out after reports of his bawdy online posts<\/a> emerged. (Chatzky did not mention those incidents in his statement, though he has made the rounds in local media explaining his sense of humor<\/a>.) Conley and Davidson are taking a more moderate approach to their candidacies.<\/p>\n

Chatzky did not immediately endorse an opponent upon dropping out.<\/p>\n

That leaves five candidates in the running for the Democratic nomination: Conley, Davidson and Phillips-Staley, along with former TV reporter Mike Sacks and Air Force veteran John Cappello. The latter two were not invited to participate in tonight\u2019s debate and have largely flown under the radar. \u2014 Madison Fernandez\u00a0<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

HOCHUL DOUBLES DOWN ON NY-21: <\/b>Hochul isn\u2019t backing down from her bet that Rep. Elise Stefanik\u2019s deep-red seat could actually turn blue.<\/p>\n

Speaking with reporters today at an unrelated event, Hochul said she\u2019s spent time listening to New Yorkers of all stripes during her trips to the North Country and thinks Democrats could flip the district.<\/p>\n

\u201cConservative, Republican farmers [are] telling me they are \u2018had it\u2019 with the tariffs, they are \u2018had it\u2019 with this ICE raids on their farms,\u201d Hochul said. \u201cI heard a lot of anger. I was reflecting on that as a place that people would not expect us to have an opportunity to win, where I believe we do. People are rejecting the policies that are driving up costs and making their lives miserable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hochul told Young Democrats last month<\/a> that she\u2019s \u201cso optimistic about our chances this year, I believe we can even take Elise Stefanik’s seat.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stefanik, who is not seeking reelection, won her seat in a general election by 24 points. Assemblymember Robert Smullen and Sticker Mule CEO Anthony Constantino are running as Republicans to replace her. Democrat Blake Gendebien is running for the seat. \u2014 Jason Beeferman<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

IN OTHER NEWS<\/h3>\n

\u2014 CHILLING EFFECT?:<\/b> According to the Rent Guidelines Board, landlord costs rose by 5.3 percent over the last year, an increase that could undermine Mamdani\u2019s efforts to freeze rents for the city\u2019s rent-stabilized apartments. (POLITICO Pro<\/a>)<\/p>\n

\u2014 FULL-TIME TOTS:<\/b> Mamdani announces full-day, year-round care for New York City\u2019s 2-K program with the first 2,000 seats opening this fall with extended-hours. (New York Daily News<\/a>)<\/p>\n

\u2014 NOT BRAGG, BUT\u2026: <\/b>Housing groups are pushing for new tenant harassment protections in the state budget that would create criminal penalties for harassing rent-stabilized apartment dwellers. (amNY<\/a>)<\/p>\n

Missed this morning\u2019s New York Playbook? We forgive you. <\/b>Read it here<\/i><\/a>.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

PILGRIMAGE: The biggest names in politics are flying in from around the country to meet the Rev. Al Sharpton. Governors Wes Moore from Maryland and JB Pritzker from Illinois and Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) spoke with him today. Yesterday was Pennsylvania’s Gov. Josh Shapiro. Still up is former Vice President Kamala Harris, Kentucky Gov. Andy […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":21120,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21119","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21119","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21119"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21119\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21120"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21119"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21119"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21119"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}