After 14 Years SE Queens to Have a Choice in the Congressional Primary

April 16, 2012 - PRLog -- After 14 Years SE Queens to Have a Choice in the Congressional Primary

April 16, 2012

NEW YORK – NY-5 Today, Congressional candidate Mike Scala submitted thousands of signatures to get on the ballot for the June 26, 2012 Democratic Primary. New York’s Congressional District 5, formerly NY-6, has not had a choice in candidates since the incumbent took office in 1998.

In a recent comment on the importance of the primary process, Scala said, “A primary also keeps candidates honest.  Most obviously prefer to forego the primary process because it’s one less election they have to win.  More than that, though, no primary means they get to ride the party wave with no personal accountability.  Many districts are not swing districts.  People have their ideologies, and come Election Day they’re going to vote along party lines. A primary forces the candidates to take a stand.  It’s easy to regurgitate party talking points, but multiple candidates vying for the same party’s nomination compels nuanced discussion.  It makes incumbents defend their records and challengers explain what they’d do differently than others in their party.“

NY-5 now contains parts of Nassau County, the full Rockaway peninsula, in addition to southeast Queens.

Meet Mike
Mike Scala was born and raised in Rosedale, Queens.  Mr. Scala graduated cum laude from Polytechnic University (now Polytechnic Institute of NYU), and is currently in his final year of study at Brooklyn Law School.  He has worked for the legal department of New York State United Teachers, where he helped defend educators facing discrimination.  He additionally spent time at the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, which advocates for improving end of life care and is the largest nonprofit membership organization of its kind in the United States.  During the 2008 presidential election, Mr. Scala worked with the Obama campaign to help college students vote early via in-person absentee ballot.  Scala is a Hip Hop artist who has released music through the storied Rawkus Records.  He recently founded the Solid Ground movement, which promotes governmental focus on everyday Americans and has garnered national support.

The Scala for Congress campaign can be reached by phone at 917-524-7584 and online at http://www.ScalaforCongress.com.  For media inquiries, email media@scalaforcongress.com.