Elaine Rivera

New York, NY —

It's the first time Democrats take control of the chamber in more than 40 years.

Bronx Senators Ruben Diaz Senior and Pedro Espada Junior along with Brooklyn Senator Carl Krueger were being wooed by Republicans to support their agenda and abandon Smith.

But after a closed-door meeting ...

New York, NY —

An Orthodox Jewish community in Crown Heights is mourning the deaths of a young Brooklyn rabbi and his wife in the terrorist attacks in Mumbai, India, saying it's a big loss. Rabbi Moshe Kotlarsky, vice chairman of educational services for the Chabad Lubavitch Movement, ...

New York, NY —

City officials say they're scaling back on the construction of new school buildings.

The Department of Education released a new five year capital construction plan that calls for about 40 new schools with 25,000 classroom seats. That's far different from the previous five-year-plan in which the ...

New York, NY —

A Harlem get out the vote Saturday was one of several events held around the city to encourage people to show up at the polls on Election Day.

REPORTER: Harlem State Senator Bill Perkins, one of several elected officials at the event, says they're not taking ...

New York, NY —

Education advocates are telling the Bloomberg administration, "I told you so." They say they warned education officials that mandating one standardized test across the city would lead to lower minority enrollment in the gifted and talented programs.

Leonie Haimson, of the group "Class Size Matters," says ...

New York, NY —

While all eyes are on the historic presidential election next week, the New York State Senate may be making big news of its own. The Democrats are two seats shy of seizing the majority and if they do, they will have control for the first ...

New York, NY —

New York Democrats are expressing confidence that they can take control of the state Senate in next week's election. Senate Minority Leader Malcolm Smith of Queens says years of failed Republican policies have led to high property taxes, thousands of people losing their jobs, and ...

New York, NY —

It was more than 40 years ago, but the turmoil of the 1960s remains a lightening rod in this year's presidential campaign. Once again, in Wednesday night's debate, Senator John McCain questioned Senator Barack Obama's relationship with Bill Ayers, former member of the left-wing radical ...

New York, NY —

This is the last week that New York residents will be able to register to vote. Advocacy groups say New Yorkers are just as excited as the rest of the country about participating in this year's presidential election. WNYC's Elaine Rivera reports.

REPORTER: For nearly 90 ...

New York, NY —

At a raucous meeting in the Bronx, two factions clashed over who would be the next chairman of the borough's Democratic Party.

Opponents to Assemblyman Jose Rivera, the current chairman who is facing a rebellion among fellow assembly members, say he stacked the meeting with supporters ...

New York, NY —

Bronx Democrats meet Sunday night to decide whether Assemblyman Jose Rivera should keep his job as party chairman in the borough. He's facing a challenge from committee members who say he practices nepotism and favors Puerto Rican party members. WNYC's Elaine Rivera reports.

REPORTER: Since the ...

New York, NY —

This weekend, Bronx Democrats will determine whether Assemblyman Jose Rivera can keep his post as chairman of the Bronx Democratic Party. In a rare insurgency, fellow Assembly members are trying to oust him. WNYC's Elaine Rivera reports.

For most people, the minutiae of local politics escapes ...

New York, NY —

Yankee Stadium ends its 85-year iconic baseball legacy Sunday evening. In its wake, New York Yankees fans are in a frenzy to get a literal piece of the stadium known as the House that Ruth built. WNYC's Elaine Rivera spent the week talking to fans ...

New York, NY —

As the financial markets continue to roil, Governor David Paterson steps in to help ailing insurance giant AIG. WNYC's Elaine Rivera reports. In an unusual move, Paterson says he'll allow the American International Group - the world's largest insurer - to use $20 billion in ...

New York, NY —

In tomorrow's primary election, state Sen. Martin Connor, a 30-year Albany veteran who represents the 25th District, faces off against newcomer Daniel Squadron in one of the most closely watched legislative races in the city.

The district covers lower Manhattan, Brooklyn Heights and other Brooklyn neighborhoods. ...

New York, NY —

In a hotly contested race for the 25th State Senate District, Democratic incumbent Martin Connor squared off last night against his challenger Daniel Squadron.

During the two hour debate, the 28-year-old Squadron argued he would bring new blood and change to Albany, while Connor, a 30-year-old ...

New York, NY —

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver has been in office since 1976 and speaker of the Assembly since 1994. He's considered one of Albany's powerful "three men in a room" that determine the fate of legislation, member items, and how the state is run. Some have argued ...

New York, NY —

Class is back in session for more than a million New York City public school students. Atara James is among the thousands of parents who dropped their children off at school for the first day today.

Standing with her two children outside of P.S. 62 in ...

New York, NY —

It's been a raucous, event-filled week at the Democratic National Convention as thousands of delegates and other convention goers essentially have taken over downtown Denver. WNYC's Elaine Rivera joins me to talk about the conversations she's been having with delegates, from what parties to attend ...

New York, NY —

New York delegates were among the Democrats who gave Hillary Clinton a rousing ovation on the second night of their national convention. Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrion says he saw the reaction of staunch Clinton supporters who felt she should have been the nominee. But ...