By Doug Miller
Suozzi, who throughout his political career has thrived in the underdog role, will face Eliot Spitzer, the state's attorney general and a prohibitive early favorite, in a primary election Sept. 12.
"It's not a secret that Tom has been considering running for governor," said Kim Devlin, a political advisor to Suozzi. "He's been traveling around the state for the last six weeks or so, meeting with people, and he will announce his decision Feb. 25."
A spokesman for Spitzer 2006, Ryan Toohey, said his campaign had no comment on Suozzi or the pending announcement.
The announcement comes after several months of shadow campaigning by the county executive, who had to fend off questions about his gubernatorial ambitions even as he was running for re-election last November.
In 2004 Suozzi was elected president of the state's County Executive Association, and used that post to whistle-stop various county seats and meet with key state leaders. On Jan. 13, he announced his "New York: A United State" tour, during which he has crisscrossed the state again and spoken before any civic group, editorial board or Democratic club that would have him, touting his history of turning around the finances and fortunes of Nassau County and, before that, Glen Cove.
It's a story Suozzi is fond of telling. The latest in a long line of elected Glen Cove Suozzis, the county executive served four two-year terms as that city's mayor, and he takes credit for reversing its financial fortunes.
In 2001, Nassau County faced bankruptcy after decades of Republican stewardship - a legacy, Suozzi said, that led to million-dollar deficits caused by the triple threat of "waste, fraud and abuse." He upset Assemblyman Thomas DiNapoli, at the time the Nassau County Democratic chairman, in a primary, then cruised to victory against the battered Republican, Bruce Bent. DiNapoli did not return calls for comment.
Within a month of taking office, Suozzi declared the county's financial situation to be grave and called for the Legislature to grant him a nearly 20 percent increase in property taxes while making drastic spending cuts. By all accounts, the tactic worked, and Suozzi was regarded as a hero by regional governmental watchdog groups, touting his "Mineola Miracle."
It wasn't all smooth sailing, however, and Suozzi took a beating when criminal charges were filed against one of his top advisors, Peter Sylver, his deputy county executive for economic development. Sylver was convicted in September 2004 of using a Nassau County credit card to run up more than $5,000 in personal expenses. He was also accused of sexually harassing an aide.
And Suozzi was dogged by the Republican minority in the county Legislature, which remains united against him and his hand-picked Nassau Democratic chairman, Jay Jacobs. While Suozzi swept to an easy victory in his re-election campaign in November, he was unable to build on his one-seat majority in the Legislature, and almost lost control of it completely when two Democrats joined an attempted Republican putsch that was nullified last week by an appeals court.
Largely, Suozzi has been pleased to portray himself as an outsider running a Nassau-based insurgency against century-old political traditions. He ran his own slate of a half-dozen candidates in the 2004 state elections against incumbents from both parties who were seen as too loyal to the Albany power structure. This "Fix Albany" campaign managed to win one seat, as Chuck Lavine, a Glen Cove city councilman, upset Albany fixture Assemblyman David Sidikman in the Democratic primary and went on to win the general election.
It has been these experiences that Suozzi claims will prepare him for the long haul of trying to beat a better-known, better-financed candidate like Spitzer, who has already received the endorsement from nearly every county Democratic organization, as well as Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, Long Beach Assemblyman Harvey Weisenberg and Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy. Spitzer is rumored to have raised more than $12 million for the race, versus Suozzi's $3 million.
The "Fix Albany" campaign won Suozzi points with good-government groups and editorial boards, but drove a wedge between him and state leaders. His relationship with Weisenberg, a top South Shore power broker, has been said to be particularly icy. Weisenberg has made himself an advocate of several causes that benefit autistic children, and whenever possible he invites Spitzer to speak at his fund-raisers.
But Suozzi has the support of U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, whose dislike for Spitzer is well known. And Suozzi has reportedly had success fund-raising on Wall Street, finding friends among the financial class Spitzer has made a career of demonizing.
Weisenberg said Monday his support for Spitzer is firm. "I don't dislike this kid," Weisenberg said of Suozzi, who is 43. "I support him as the county executive, and have since he took office in any and every way I could. ... But I have to consider who is best qualified. With Eliot Spitzer being successful, the Assembly Democrats will have a partner to work with, which we haven't had in 12 years. Now Suozzi presents an adversarial position to the Legislature."
Particularly toward Weisenberg and Silver? "You can never quote Tom Suozzi saying something bad about me - this is a perception that people generate themselves. It's not real," Weisenberg said. "I talk to him. I give him advice and guidance. He does what he wants, but I talk to him because I respect him. ... I've worked very hard to help Tom Suozzi be successful."
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