QUEENS — With the state primaries set for this Tuesday, the race is heating up for two candidates hoping to represent Senate District 10, which includes Jamaica, Rosedale, Richmond Hill, Ozone Park and Springfield Gardens as well as the Rockaways.
Incumbent Democrat State Sen. James Sanders Jr. faces off with challenger Adrienne Adams, chairwoman of Community Board 12 and an educator, who has been endorsed by the Queens County Democratic Party.
Sanders, a former City Councilman who grew up in Far Rockaway, declared last year that he was planning to challenge Queens Rep. Gregory Meeks this fall, but he later changed his mind.
Sanders, who currently serves on several committees including Commerce, Economic Development and Small Business, recently announced that $7.65 million was set aside in the 2016 state budget for upgrades to make the Jamaica transit hub safer and more accessible as part of the plan he worked on with other state lawmakers and Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
On Monday, he said he was confident he was going to win. “My level of support for my constituents speaks for itself and I am confident that the results will reflect that clearly," he said.
But Adams, who lives in Jamaica and is now serving her second term as chairwoman of CB12, said that "families in southeast Queens and Rockaway are eager for change."
"With every door I knock or civic meeting I attend, people tell me that they want to see a real break from this cycle of neglect," said Adams, who last year was appointed by Queens Borough President Melinda Katz to the Jamaica Now Leadership Council, a group which promotes economic development in the neighborhood.
In another notable race, seven-time incumbent Democratic State Sen. Toby Ann Stavisky is being challenged by S.J. Jung, a community advocate and small business owner, in the 16th Senate District, encompassing Elmhurst, Flushing and Bayside, as well as a portion of Rego Park and Forest Hills.
Jung, who also challenged Stavisky in 2014, wrote on his website that he seeks "greater transparency, accountability, and integrity" in Albany. According to published reports, he opposes abortion and gay marriage, which Stavisky voted to legalize in New York.
