Friday’s New York Times details the Real Estate industry - normally Republican allies - campaign contributions to State Senate Democrats. They’re hoping to prevent or water down affordable housing legislation if the Democrats take back the Albany this fall:
Anticipating a Democratic takeover of the New York State Senate this fall, real estate executives have begun courting Senate Democratic leaders, hoping to fend off what they expect will be aggressive efforts by tenant groups to revamp rent regulations next year.
The effort represents a significant new approach for real estate interests, which for years have been closely allied with the Senate’s Republican majority. But after controlling the Senate for four decades, the Republicans now hold a bare one-seat majority and many strategists believe the Democrats are in a strong position to gain control of the chamber in November.
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“Campaign cash is like a drug, and the real estate industry are like heroin dealers,” said Dan Cantor, executive director of the Working Families Party, which is leaning on Democrats to support a broad expansion of rent laws. “They have fed the Republicans’ habit for decades, and now they are trying to hook the Senate Democrats.”
