Leading Up to the Election

By Mamta Badkar

Last fall, the city council gave Mayor Bloomberg the green light to campaign for a third term as mayor, reversing the two-term limit voters in New York City had favored in two previous referendum.  But if post primary polls are any indication, the voters seem poised to forgive him for ignoring their wishes.

Bloomberg reasoned that his success record over the last eight years would trump voters’ preference for term limits. “The voters have a choice,” said Bloomberg at the Oct. 13 debate against his Democratic rival, William Thompson. “If that’s their issue on Nov. 3,  they can express themselves.”

In a special run-up-to-the-election series, Bronx Ink reporters ask the question: what has Bloomberg done for the Bronx?

At best, our reporters found a mixed record in the nation’s poorest congressional district. Food banks are running out of emergency supplies in the Bronx, at the same time more Green Cart vendors have set-up shop in a bid to promote a healthy lifestyle. Some Bronx residents enjoy the results of the $1.1 billion the mayor pumped into city parks, while others in the shadow of the new Yankee Stadium have lost out, for now.  As for the homeless? Their numbers have increased by 45 percent since the mayor took office.

Our coverage takes a look at some of his contenders, including the only Bronx-based candidate on the ballot — Frances Villar, 26, single mother of two, running on the Socialist ticket with $19,000 in her campaign war chest.

Look for Bronx Ink reporters on election day, asking voters at the precincts what they care about.