Changing New York City Politics

by Asher Arian, Arthur S. Goldberg, John H. Mollenkopf, Edward T. Rogowsky

Overview

First published in 1991, Changing New York City Politics provides an important grounding for understanding where New York City politics is likely to go in the coming two years.

Three decades after New York City’s first Black mayor was elected and then defeated after only one term, the city’s second Black mayor is facing challenges that in many ways are similar to those of his predecessor, yet different in others. Like David Dinkins, Mayor Eric Adams faces worries about crime and public disorder, recovery from an economic downturn, and criticism over his managerial style. It may be a quite different city today in terms of the makeup of its electorate – less white, more diverse, but certainly no more Black – and Adams may have a closer connection to the Police Department than Dinkins could manage – but the challenges of constructing a multi-racial electoral and governing coalition in the face of skepticism from white voters remains.

This book will be of interest to students and researchers of political science, American history, and comparative politics.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781040114933
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	09/30/2024
Series:	Routledge Revivals
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	264
File size:	15 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Asher Arian, at the time of the first publication, was a member of the Wagner Institute of CUNY, USA.

Arthur S. Goldberg, at the time of the first publication, was a member of the Wagner Institute of CUNY, USA.

John H. Mollenkopf teaches Political Science and Sociology at the CUNY Graduate Center, directs its Center for Urban Research, and chairs the public policy subfield in political science. His teaching and research interests focus on urban politics and public policy, using New York City as a case study in comparison with similar large cities in the U.S. and Europe to understand urban political mobilization, immigrant political incorporation, and the formation of governing coalitions. Prior to joining the Graduate Center in 1981, he directed the Economic Development Division of the New York City Department of City Planning and taught urban studies and public management at Stanford University. He was also Program Director for Urban Initiatives at the Social Science Research Council, chaired its Committee on New York City, and served on the editorial boards of PS and Urban Affairs Review.

Edward T. Rogowsky was Professor Emeritus of Political Science, Brooklyn College, CUNY. He served as director of the Brooklyn College Graduate Center for Worker Education, New York City from 1989 to 1995. In 1990, Rogowsky was appointed to the New York City Planning Commission by the Brooklyn borough president, a position he served in until in March, 2001.

Table of Contents

1. Understanding New York 2. The Evolution of the Koch Coalition 3. The 1988 Presidential Election in New York City 4. The 1989 Mayoral Primaries 5. The 1989 General Election 6. Shifting Allegiances 7. The Political Ecology of Neighbourhoods 8. New York City and the Nation — A Comparison 9. Lessons Appendix A Questionnaire Item Wordings Appendix B A Very Brief Introduction to Anthony Downs’s Spatial Theory of Party Competition Appendix C Operationalization of Variables

Editorial Reviews

In this analysis of how David Dinkins became New York City's first black mayor, the authors, members of the Wagner Institute of the City University of New York, recount that New York has been victimized by the forces of deindustrialization, white flight, ethnic and racial tensions, class polarization and financial disaster. Dinkins's victory was predicated on a unique set of circumstances, including the length of his predecessor Edward I. Koch's incumbency and the rampant corruption that became apparent late in his administration. The authors argue that Dinkins was able to defeat Koch in the primary and Rudolph Giuliani in the general election because of support from Latino voters and from white voters who characterize themselves as ``very liberal.'' The other message of the book is that New York is less black, more Latino, less Protestant, and more Catholic and Jewish--and more liberal--than other large American cities, which in turn are more liberal politically than the rest of the country. Useful as it may be for specialists, this dry and repetitive volume drains the color out of New York's rough-and-tumble political wars. (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

The authors, affiliated with the Wagner Institute of CUNY, seek to isolate and interpret the underlying factors that led to the narrow victory of David Dinkins in the 1989 mayoralty race in New York City; he is the first African American to win that prize. Their research findings, based on voter polling, show that while race may seem the obvious explanation, Dinkins's 47,000-vote victory margin was also based on the support he got from white liberals, Latinos, and even a significant number of white, ethnic Catholics. They find evidence of the reemergence of New York's historic alliance between liberal whites, blacks, and Hispanics, but this time led by blacks. The technical appendixes on polling techniques are useful for research on voter behavior. Suitable for academic urban affairs collections.-- Harry Frumerman, formerly with Hunter Coll., CUNY

Library Journal