Contest overshadowed by candidate’s appointment of dead woman to party post
An Assembly primary race in southern Brooklyn has been dogged by revelations that one of the candidates on the ballot appointed a dead woman and several unwitting people to positions in the borough’s Democratic Party.
Dionne Brown-Jordan, a Brooklyn district leader who also serves as an assistant treasurer for the borough party, is challenging two-term Democratic Assemblywoman Mathylde Frontus in Tuesday’s primary to represent the 46th District, which spans Coney Island and Bay Ridge.
As first reported by the Daily News last month, Brown-Jordan used her district leader post in December 2020 to appoint Coney Island housing activist Alfreida Davis — who was dead for a month — to a seat on the Brooklyn Democratic Party County Committee.
At the same time, Brown-Jordan allegedly tapped three local residents for committee seats without their knowledge, and petitions circulated on her behalf appointed another nearly two dozen unsuspecting people earlier this year, news organization The City reported.
The New Kings Democrats, an insurgent group within the Brooklyn Democratic Party with which Frontus is affiliated, allege Brown-Jordan’s appointments are part of a pattern by party leaders to stack the committee to expand their influence over internal party operations, like selecting judicial candidates.
Frontus told The News that her campaign against Brown-Jordan has been consumed by the revelations, but many of her constituents are unaware of the alleged committee shenanigans.
“The people who do know are disturbed, of course. I haven’t heard of anyone who knows of it who aren’t disturbed, but I also have to run on my record,” Frontus said.
“I have had moments of trying not to become too disillusioned when thinking of what the ramifications of this means. This shouldn’t be happening, and I think the laws need to be rewritten because there should be some sort of way to stop a person who does something like this from running. It should be disqualifying.”
Brown-Jordan, in a statement, accused Frontus of ginning up the Davis controversy and said she secured the late Coney Island woman’s consent for the appointment months before her death.
Brown-Jordan did not, however, explain why she moved ahead with appointing Davis even though she was dead and would also not comment on why she picked people for committee posts without their consent.
“This election should be about the future of the district, not putting a cloud around the legacy of one of the most esteemed leaders in Coney Island history,” Brown-Jordan said in the statement, referring to Davis. “I vow to continue the good work that Alfie began; fighting for tenant rights, education, public safety and better housing . ... I will not be distracted by the vicious politics of division and distortion plaguing this community.”
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez’s office said last month that it’s “looking into” whether there’s grounds for an investigation into the eyebrow-raising appointments.
Five prominent government watchdog groups urged Gonzalez in a note last week to “seriously review whether there was any potential criminal conduct.”
“Any fraudulent activity around the appointment or nomination of party positions undermines our democratic processes and contributes to voter cynicism,” read the letter, signed by the leaders of Reinvent Albany, Citizens Union, Common Cause, League of Women Voters and the New York Public Interest Research Group. “Voter cynicism is corrosive to increasing participation in what are already low-turnout elections.”
The Brooklyn Democratic Party, which is led by Assemblywoman Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, has stayed out of the 46th District race, opting to not officially support Frontus or Brown-Jordan.
But Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-Brooklyn, Queens), who has ties to Bichotte Hermelyn and is the No. 5 Democrat in the House, endorsed Brown-Jordan, praising her as “a tremendous advocate for this district.”
As the party’s assistant treasurer, Brown-Jordan also serves on its executive committee with Bichotte Hermelyn.
Frontus was elected in 2018 after the resignation of former Assemblywoman Pamela Harris following her indictment on corruption charges.
If reelected, Frontus said, she’s working on several pieces of legislation on ways to make state government more transparent, calling that a “major issue” in the state capital.
“The system is not working,” she said. “It’s not good for democracy.”