New York City’s influential hotel workers union is endorsing Democratic state Sen. Jessica Ramos’ primary challenger

Source: Politico

New York Playbook PM 

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: New York City’s influential hotel workers union is endorsing Democratic state Sen. Jessica Ramos’ primary challenger, dealing a big blow to the incumbent whose political standing has faltered since she aligned herself with former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in last year’s mayoral race.

A Hotel and Gaming Trades Council official, who was granted anonymity to discuss the union’s internal deliberations, said its endorsement of Ramos’ opponent, Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas, isn’t due to her Cuomo ties. Rather, the official told Playbook that the union is throwing its weight behind Gonzalez-Rojas because of Ramos’ “unconscionable” decision to vote against the Metropolitan Park Casino in her district, a project that’s expected to produce thousands of new jobs for the union.

In a statement on the Gonzalez-Rojas endorsement, HTC head Rich Maroko hinted at the union’s disappointment in Ramos over the casino.

“We are proud to throw our support behind a candidate who supports the creation of good paying jobs, instead of actively opposing a once in a generation opportunity to improve the lives of thousands of working families,” he said.

Ramos defended her opposition Thursday, saying she voted no “after hearing directly from residents who want investment in housing and small businesses, not a casino tied to a billionaire whose record raises serious concerns.”

“I stood with the neighborhood, and I will keep delivering for working families,” said Ramos, whose team also noted she has received tens of thousands of dollars in campaign cash from labor unions in this cycle, including HTC, which gave her $5,000 last year.

The HTC’s endorsement of Gonzalez-Rojas, who currently serves as an assemblymember, is unusual for multiple reasons.

In general, it’s uncommon for powerhouse unions like HTC to endorse against incumbent Democrats. The Gonzalez-Rojas endorsement is especially remarkable, given that HTC has been a steadfast supporter of Ramos since she first got elected in 2018 and became the Senate’s Labor Committee chair. Additionally, Gonzalez-Rojas, a democratic socialist, is not the sort of politician that the historically centrist union typically backs.

HTC isn’t alone in ditching Ramos.

New York’s powerful healthcare union, 1199SEIU, also endorsed Gonzalez-Rojas last week after having supported Ramos in past election cycles. And the Queens Democratic Party voted earlier this month to not carry her petitions this year to get on the ballot.

The political headwinds for Ramos started in June, when she effectively dropped her long-shot mayoral bid and endorsed Cuomo, a decision borne out of her belief that Zohran Mamdani would make for a bad mayor.

Gonzalez-Rojas, who launched her challenge against Ramos in response to her Cuomo embrace, said in a statement she’s “deeply honored” to have HTC’s backing, adding that the union’s members “deserve a state senator who will stand with them.” — Chris Sommerfeldt.