Robert Capano
Robert "Bob" Capano was a Reform Party candidate for District 43 representative on the New York City Council in New York. He was defeated in the general election on November 7, 2017.[1] Capano also ran as a Republican candidate for the District 43 seat. He was defeated for the Republican line on the ballot in the primary election on September 12, 2017.
Capano previously ran for the District 43 seat on the city council in 2009.[2] He was also a Republican, Independence, and Conservative Party candidate for the District 46 seat in the New York State Assembly in 2008.[3]
Biography
Capano earned a B.A. in political science from SUNY-New Paltz and an M.A. in urban policy and administration from Brooklyn College.[4]
At the time of his 2017 run for city council, Capano was a manager for Gristedes Supermarkets. His professional experience includes work as an adjunct political science professor for John Jay College of Criminal Justice, an English and social studies teacher for St. Edmund's High School, a regional sales representative for a beverage company, a senior legislative affairs and community relations advisor to Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz (D), and the Brooklyn borough director for U.S. Rep. Vito Fossella (R). Capano has also served as the president of the 68th Precinct Youth Council, the chair of the Bay Ridge Community Council's Civic Affairs Committee, and the vice president of the Bay Right Consumer Federation.[2][4]
Elections
2017
New York City held elections for mayor, public advocate, comptroller, and all 51 seats on the city council in 2017. New Yorkers also voted for offices in their boroughs: The Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island.
Primary elections were scheduled for September 12, 2017, and the general election was on November 7, 2017. Under New York law, candidates who run unopposed in a primary or general election win the nomination or election automatically, and their names do not appear on the ballot.[5] Justin Brannan (D) defeated John Quaglione (R), Robert Capano (Reform), and Angel Medina (Women's Equality) in the general election for the District 43 seat on the New York City Council.
| New York City Council, District 43 General Election, 2017 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Justin Brannan |
50.23% | 12,894 | |
| Republican | John Quaglione | 47.14% | 12,100 | |
| Reform | Robert Capano | 1.34% | 344 | |
| Women's Equality | Angel Medina | 1.09% | 281 | |
| Write-in votes | 0.19% | 49 | ||
| Total Votes | 25,668 | |||
| Source: New York City Board of Elections, "General Election - November 7, 2017," accessed January 2, 2018 | ||||
John Quaglione defeated Liam McCabe, Robert Capano, and Lucretia Regina-Potter in the Republican primary for the District 43 seat on the New York City Council.[6]
| New York City Council, District 43 Republican Primary Election, 2017 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| John Quaglione |
47.01% | 1,865 |
| Liam McCabe | 33.22% | 1,318 |
| Robert Capano | 14.60% | 579 |
| Lucretia Regina-Potter | 4.59% | 182 |
| Write-in votes | 0.58% | 23 |
| Total Votes | 3,967 | |
| Source: New York City Board of Elections, "2017 Primary: Certified Results," accessed September 28, 2017 | ||
Campaign themes
2017
Capano's campaign website hosted petitions about the following issues. Click "show" on the boxes below for more information about his positions.
| Stand With Christopher Columbus! |
|---|
| "Mayor Bill de Blasio and City Council Speaker Mellissa Mark Viverito are at it again with an ill conceived plan to create a Statue Review Task Force that will decide on the political correctness of statues, including the one of Christopher Columbus in Columbus Circle.
As someone who has taught high school social studies and is an adjunct Professor of Political Science, this is like ripping the pages out of a history book. Bill de Blasio and Melissa Mark-Viverito should focus on real issues like solving our homeless crisis, fixing a failed subway system, and dealing with illegal home conversions."[7] |
| Heroin Injection Facilities |
|---|
| "A supervised injection facility is a legally sanctioned facility in which individuals are able to consume illicit recreational drugs, like heroin, intravenously.
The facilities provide sterile injection equipment. There are currently no supervised injection facilities in the United States. About 100 exist, mainly in Europe and Canada. Mayor de Blasio and the City Council have allocated $100,000 for a study on opening supervised injection facilities for heroin addicts. This is unacceptable. These centers don’t solve the problems of drug addition, they merely condone the use of heroin in a ‘safe’ setting that is paid for by the taxpayers. That’s wrong and makes no sense. It is bad for the taxpayer, bad for law enforcement, and worse for addicts. Any funds spent on this issue should be focused on breaking the addicts’ dependency on drugs, not taking a step that basically decriminalizes the use of heroin. Also, what neighborhoods will these facilities be placed in?"[8] |
| No Taxpayer Funded Defense for Illegals from Deportation |
|---|
| "Bob Capano called on New York City over burdened taxpayers to join him in speaking out against City Council Speaker Melissa Mark Viverito’s outrageous plan to allow illegal aliens who are violent felons to have access to free legal services to fight deportation. The legal services would be funded by $16.4 million in taxpayers money. Capano called Speaker Viverito’s plan 'total lunacy that must be stopped.'
City Council candidate Bob Capno said, 'City Council Speaker Melissa Mark Vivertio’s plan to allow illegal aliens access to free legal services is total lunacy that must be stopped. It’s crazy enough that the city is allocating $16.4 million in taxpayer funds to provide legal services to illegal aliens facing deportation. But, one has to question the sanity and the motives of anyone who would add violent felons and others convicted of egregious crimes to the list. 'Tax dollars should be used for the benefit of the taxpayers of our city, who are already burdened by some of the heaviest tax bills in the nation. If Speaker Viverito cared about our city and its citizens she’d allocate the funds to the NYPD, the Administration for Children’s Services or any number of programs for at risk kids over the upcoming summer vacation. Even Mayor de Blasio, as liberal as he is, opposes Speaker Viverito’s plan. That’s how bad it is. 'Let’s use the money to benefit people who aren’t criminals! The taxpayers of this city need to stand-up and speak out against this ridiculous and dangerous plan.'"[9] |
| No Taxpayer Funded Citi Bikes |
|---|
| "Bob Capano called the City Council’s plan to spend $12 million in public funds to finance the expansion of the Citi Bike program 'a bad use of tax dollars and a scheme that doesn’t past the smell test.'
The City Council announced earlier this week that it plans to authorize $12 million in spending to finance the expansion of the Citi Bike program by 2,000 bikes into areas of the city it does not currently serve and left the door open to future subsidies to the Citi Bike program. Bob Capano said, 'The New York City Council’s plan to finance Citi Bikes expansion in areas outside of Manhattan is ludicrous. When the Citi Bike program was originally presented to the city it was pitched as a positive revenue generator. Now the City Council is looking to spend $12 million in tax dollars to expand the Citi Bike program in upper Manhattan and the outer boroughs and they opened the possibility that the $12 million could become a reoccurring burden for city taxpayers. It’s simply a bad use of tax dollars and a scheme that doesn’t past the smell test. 'The monthly financials released by Citi Bike shows it generated revenues in excess of $40.5 million in calendar year 2016. It’s bad enough that Citi Bike docking stations are gobbling up valuable parking spaces in residential neighborhoods and that bike lanes are creating headaches for commuters and small business owners. Now, to add insult to injury, the City Council wants the over-burdened taxpayers of our city to pay for the added inconvenience. You don’t have to have an MBA from Harvard to understand that the proposed cost of $6,000 per additional bike is crazy. 'In the City Council I’d call for a moratorium on all Citi Bike expansion, until such time that the operators are able to access private sector financing to pay for it. In addition, I’d call for better notification of residents within a 2 block radius of any planned site for a Citi Bike docking station so their voices can be heard. There are simply too many stories of Brooklynites being surprised by a docking station suddenly being installed in front of their home or place of business; this has stop! 'Mayor de Blasio and the City Council need to stop spending our tax dollars like drunken sailors. We have a municipal hospital system bleeding billions of dollars and an ever growing homeless population. Perhaps the $12 million would be better spent alleviating human suffering than adding 2,000 new bikes to the city’s streets.'"[10] |
| Trash the NYC Bag Tax |
|---|
| "Unless lawmakers act, the 5 Cent NYC Bag Fee implemented by the NYC City Council will begin February 15th.
Bob Capano, who manages a Gristedes on the Upper East Side and is the leading Republican candidate for Brooklyn’s 43rd Council District (Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights, Bensonhurst), stated, 'Killing the NYC bag tax must be an immediate priority at the new state legislative session. Unless Albany acts, New York City residents will have to pay more at retail stores and wait on longer lines because of another failed progressive policy of City Hall.' The NYC Department of Sanitation has communicated to businesses that the bag fee will begin February 15, 2017 (link below). The City Council delayed implementation of the law from October, 2016 to February, 2017 for the stated reason of working on new language with the state legislature to address wide criticism. However, there has been no agreement between city and state lawmakers. The current legislation requires retail stores to charge shoppers five cents for each bag or face fines."[11] |
| "Blue Lives Matter" Law |
|---|
| "The 'Blue Lives Matter' Law would make using physical force against a police officer a hate crime, thereby adding officers to protected classes including race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation.
Originally introduced by Assemblyman Ron Castorina, the bill increases penalties for hate crimes. Therefore, if this bill becomes law, assaulting a police officer would become a Class A felony rather than a Class B felony. Also, aggravated assault on a police officer (where one intends to cause serious harm) would be upgraded from a Class B felony to a Class A felony. Louisiana has already enacted a 'Blue Lives Matter' law, and similar ones are being considered in Texas and Mississippi. Capano, whose two uncles are retired Brooklyn cops said, 'I commend Assemblyman Castorina for introducing this bill. It is just sad that the NYC Council today is more likely to support those who attack our police than protecting them. Here is an opportunity for Council Members to finally get their priorities straight and pass a resolution supporting this NYS "Blue Lives Matter"' bill. Councilman Joe Borelli (R-SI) is sponsoring the resolution in the City Council to support the NYS 'Blue Lives Matter' bill."[12] |
2009
In response to a question from the New York City Campaign Finance Board about the most important issue he would address if elected, Capano said:
| “ |
Creating jobs and economic growth. These are tough times, and I will fight to bring jobs to our city and our neighborhoods. We need Mom & Pop stores and all small businesses to thrive so they can generate new jobs and give others the same opportunities they gave people like me.[13] |
” |
| —Robert Capano[2] | ||
Other issues he listed as important were:
| “ |
Stop the harassment of local residents by Sanitation and Traffic cops. City government exists to benefit our citizens -- we do not exist just to provide the city income from parking and sanitation tickets. We need to build a local YMCA. I will work to create other recreational programs for young people to keep them off the streets and out of trouble. Protect our Senior Citizens. We have one of the largest concentrations of seniors in the nation, and I will fight to make sure that our seniors get the services and recreational programs they deserve.[13] |
” |
| —Robert Capano[2] | ||
Endorsements
2017
Capano received endorsements from the following in 2017:
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Robert Capano New York City Council. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
| New York, New York | New York | Municipal government | Other local coverage |
|---|---|---|---|
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External links
- New York City Council
- Campaign website
- Social media
Footnotes
- ↑ Twitter, "Bob Capano on September 26, 2017," accessed September 27, 2017
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 New York City Campaign Finance Board, "Bob Capano," accessed September 3, 2017
- ↑ New York State Board of Elections, "Assembly Election Returns Nov. 4, 2008," accessed September 3, 2017
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Bob Capano - City Council, "Meet Bob," accessed September 3, 2017
- ↑ New York Election Law, "Sec 6-160. Primaries," accessed July 14, 2017
- ↑ Ballotpedia staff, "Email correspondence with the New York City Board of Elections," July 14, 2017
- ↑ Bob Capano - City Council, "Mayor de Blasio, Keep Your Hands Off Columbus!" accessed September 3, 2017
- ↑ Bob Capano - City Council, "Tell Mayor de Blasio: Heroin Injection Facilities Not Welcome in NYC," accessed September 3, 2017
- ↑ Bob Capano - City Council, "No NYC Taxpayer Funds to Defend Those Here Illegally from Deportation," accessed September 3, 2017
- ↑ Bob Capano - City Council, "No Taxpayer Funded Citi Bike Expansion," accessed September 3, 2017
- ↑ Bob Capano - City Council, "Trash the NYC Bag Tax," accessed September 3, 2017
- ↑ Bob Capano - City Council, "Support the NYS 'Blue Lives Matter' Law," accessed September 3, 2017
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Bob Capano - City Council, "Capano Endorsed by Kings County GOP Coalition," March 29, 2017
- ↑ Bob Capano - City Council, "Reform Party Backs Bob Capano in Council Race," June 5, 2017
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