Shot to Win Brooklyn Seat
Assessor Sizes Up Council

By REUVEN BLAU

In a crowded special election field, veteran city Assessor and community activist Jesse E. Hamilton has done his best to stick out, as he campaigns to fill the Brooklyn City Council seat vacated by newly elected U.S. Rep. Yvette D. Clarke.

The Chief-Leader/Eric Weiss A CALCULATED CAMPAIGN: Veteran City Assessor Jesse E. Hamilton is running to fill the Brooklyn City Council seat vacated by newly elected U.S. Rep. Yvette D. Clarke. Mr. Hamilton, a longtime community activist who is also a lawyer, was endorsed last week by District Council 37.

"I recently won the district leader position for the Crown Heights 43rd Assembly District," he said during a recent phone interview, just before leaving to submit his petitions with 7,000 signatures to the city's Board of Elections.

Active in Schools

Mr. Hamilton, who has long been involved in local politics, also served as the president of his community school board from 1996 to 2004. "My children weren't school age," the father of a young son and daughter noted. "But I wanted to make sure we had a strong educational system in the district."

During his tenure, Mr. Hamilton said he helped raise student reader scores, improved GED programs for parents and started educational workshops and leadership conferences, as well as setting up an immigration welcome center to help the Caribbean community.

Mr. Hamilton, whose mother's family comes from Barbados, has been a vocal advocate for the area's Caribbean residents, a key voting population in the 40th Council District. "My mother was involved in politics," he said. "She took me around with her to collect signatures at an early age."

The Feb. 20 special election isn't Mr. Hamilton's first foray into politics. Last year, he ran for the 43rd Assembly seat in Brooklyn and lost to the incumbent, Karim Camara.

'Few Resources'

Mr. Hamilton grew up in the Moorehouse housing projects in the South Bronx, where, according to his Web site, he and his two sisters "had little resources but a lot of love and nurturing." At a young age he carried groceries for senior citizens on the weekends "in order to have pocket change."

He was graduated from Ithaca College and began working for the Finance Department as an Assessor. At night, he later attended and was graduated from Long Island University, where he received his master's degree in Business Administration.

But Mr. Hamilton wanted more, and in 1990 he began attending Seton Hall Law School at night. He later was graduated from the university, but he has never worked full-time as a lawyer. "It's not about the money," he remarked. "I do a lot of pro bono legal cases for people who can't afford legal services and legal advice."

Union: 'Great Candidate'

David Moog, the president of Assessors Local 1757 of District Council 37, noted that Mr. Hamilton served as the union's treasurer from 1988-90 before pursuing his law degree.

"I can say wholeheartedly that I'm endorsing him, not just because he's my member, but because he's a great candidate," Mr. Moog said. "He's solid on every issue. I saw one of the other candidates speak and they can't hold a candle to him."

Talking about Mr. Hamilton, he added, "He's a person who's never stopped improving his education. He's always been very supportive of all the union issues."

Got DC 37's Nod

DC 37 endorsed Mr. Hamilton last week, a potential difference-maker in the tight race which will likely include 12 other candidates. "People are saying I'm the frontrunner," Mr. Hamilton said.

The Brooklyn resident said he is running a grassroots campaign, with the help of about 50 supporters. He has taken a leave of absence from his city job, noting that work tends to slow down after the assessment roll is completed in December.

Mr. Moog noted that Mr. Hamilton has had many opportunities to leave Brooklyn or his job as an Assessor. "He chose to stay in the city to make a difference - to help improve those schools and do well by that," he remarked.

The Council seat in contention has been held by the Clarke family since 1992. Yvette Clarke was elected in 2001 and before that, the position was occupied by her mother Una, the first Jamaican-born Council Member.

The winner of the upcoming vote will serve through the end of 2007. But there will be a Democratic primary on Sept. 11 and a general election on Nov. 6. Whoever wins that vote will serve until the end of 2009.

The 40th Council District encompasses sections of Kensington, Prospect-Lefferts, Ditmas Park, Crown Heights, Flatbush, and East Flatbush.

The 12 other candidates who have expressed interest in the race are: Zizi Ferdinand, Mathieu Eugene - whom Yvette Clarke has endorsed - Gerry Hopkins, Joel Toney, Wellington Sharpe, Jennifer N. James, Leithland Tulloch, Mohammad Albright, Mozell Ducton, Karlene Gordon, Harry Schiffman, and Zenobia McNally.