Seddio tosses hat back into the ring

Frank Seddio, who has served as both a judge in Surrogate’sCourt and as an assemblymember in southeastern Brooklyn, hasdeclared his candidacy – sort of – in a yet-to-be-declared race forcity council.

At the February 2 meeting of the Thomas Jefferson DemocraticClub, in Canarsie, Seddio said he would be running for the seat inthe 46th Council District assuming that the current occupant, CityCouncilmember Lew Fidler, is successful in his bid for StateSenate.

People ask me, why do I want to do it? noted Seddio. I wantto do it because it’s what I am about. I have been part of theneighborhood my entire 65 years. I have the best opportunity tojump into the position and start from day one doing the rightthing, making sure everything we get [thanks to the efforts ofFidler and his predecessor, former Councilmember Herb Berman]continues to come into the district. I have years of experience. Iknow what to do. I think I have the best ability to bring back thethings we need every day.

Fidler is the Democratic candidate for the seat vacated bydisgraced former State Senator Carl Kruger, who pleaded guilty inDecember to influence peddling. He will go up against RepublicanDavid Storobin, a vice chair of the Kings County Republican Party,in a March 20 special election.

The GOP, said Fidler, has renewed energy for this race becauseof the surprise upset victory by Republican Bob Turner last year,when he beat out Democrat David Weprin in a special election tofill the Congressional seat vacated by Anthony Weiner, who resignedhis position in the wake of a sexting scandal.

Nonetheless, The district Lew Fidler is running in is 70percent Democratic, so we are very confident that Lew will win theelection, noted Seddio. His movement to the State Senate is goingto be a great progression for all of us, the more so if themajority in the GOP-controlled Senate swings Democratic, as thatwould mean greater amounts of funding coming into Democraticdistricts than currently, Seddio said.

In a race to replace Fidler, Seddio would likely face Canarsieactivist Mercedes Narcisse, a business person who has not heldelective office. Seddio was elected to the state Assembly followingthe death of his predecessor Anthony Genovesi in 1998. He waselevated to the bench in 2005.