Republican Bob Turner, who got 40 percent of the vote in the last election, is making a second stab at Anthony Weiner's old seat. He will be representing the Republican party against democratic rival, Assemblyman David Weprin, in a special election on September 13.
The choice of Turner—a 70-year-old relative newbie to politics whose Irish background doesn't quite match up with the ninth districts Jewish, Hispanic and Italian makeup—is interesting as there was speculation that the GOP wanted to pick a more formidable opponent. Specifically, signs were pointing in the direction of former Giuliani staffer Juan Reyes. But it seems that the supporters of Turner, who will make a speech on Monday announcing his candidacy, won out in the end.
The winner of the special election will take office immediately, and serve out the rest of Weiner's term (through 2012). After that though, the fate of the seat is up in the air as it is highly expected to be redistricted out of existence.
