NYC Sentinel

By Sujay Kumar

Voters in Bedford-Stuyvesant and Crown Heights cast their ballots in the general election today and chose whether to mark line E and elect 46-year-old newcomer Mark Winston Griffith, or to go with line A and allow the 74-year-old incumbent, Albert Vann, to reclaim his City Council office. What seemed like a classic David vs. Goliath face-off may not be determined by David’s strength, but instead by how fed-up the community is with Goliath.

Photo: Sujay Kumar

Griffith, a black man distinguished by his long dread locks, grew up in the neighborhood and is a Democrat, yet is running on the Working Families Party ticket. Currently the executive director of the Drum Major Institute for Public Policy, a progressive think tank in Manhattan founded during the civil rights movement, Griffith generated positive buzz after only losing September’s primary election by 735 votes to Vann, who captured 31 percent of the votes. Since then, predominant Black New Yorkers such as Rev. Al Sharpton and Councilman Charles Barron have endorsed Griffith.

Vann, too, was born and raised in Bedford-Stuyvesant, and is recognized on the street for his signature white goatee and mustache and bald head. Vann represented the neighborhood in the New York State Assembly for more than 25 years before being elected to the City Council in 2001.

While Vann has years of experience and Griffith is still untested, many residents feel that giving Griffith a chance is a better option than leaving Vann in office.

“Vann has got to go,” said Tamaya Jones, 37, after voting for Griffith at PS 93. She said that Vann only surfaces during election time and has yet to reply to her attempts to contact him about issues with construction in her building. Although Jones admits to have “read good things” about Griffith, she is primarily voting against Vann.

Sarah Sabino, 21, exited the polling station at PS 93 with Ingrid George after they found out they were registered to vote a few blocks away.

“I’m not sure yet about Griffith,” said George, 55. “But Vann hasn’t done anything.”

At JHS 258, 81-year-old Edward Jordan said he was reluctant to vote for Vann again because of Vann’s recent inaction in office, but ultimately cast his ballot for the incumbent because his wife works for the campaign.

“We need some change,” said Jordan, “But not yet.”

By the door of JHS 258, Danielle Higgins wore a white T-shirt with green letters that read “Vote Griffith” and passed out flyers. She said that after the primary success, Griffith’s grassroots campaign, which involved knocking on doors and calling residents directly, will catapult him into office.

“He’s just The Man,” said Higgins, 23, “He’s got it.”

Photo: Sujay Kumar

But while many who went to the polls seemed determined to block Vann’s victory, blue posters with the letters “V-A-N-N” in red and the slogan “A Dedicated and Proven Leader” were plastered on street corners in Bedford-Stuyvesant.

Edgerton Maloney, 50, voted for Griffith at PS 93. He was not sure whether Vann’s time in office had reached its finale, but he was unfazed by the Vann campaigners passing out flyers across the street.

“Al needs to be retired,” said Maloney. “We need new blood.”