Bringing Accountability to the 42nd Assembly District

Rhoda Jacobs has demonstrated a commitment to securing the office of Assemblywoman for a 35th year - if necessary, using unethical, and prohibited tactics. At minimum, her campaign strategy lacks the level of integrity and competence required to represent this district.

We have become aware that Jacobs is currently drawing a New York State salary AND a New York State pension for the same job, effectively "double dipping" on taxpayers' backs. It should be noted that the national unemployment rate is 8.3% while the unemployment rate in the 42nd Assembly district is 13.6%. Exploiting government loopholes has allowed Rhoda Jacobs to collect salaries amounting to the income of 4 working class families' salaries in the Flatbush area.  This puts Rhoda Jacobs more in line with the "1%" than the working class residents who make up the majority of her district.

http://articles.nydailynews.com/2009-09-06/news/17934096_1_diems-rent-campaign

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/brooklyn/vito_double_dip_an_editorial_NKnL2t5jsaSn6lqArtVoSK

In exchange for her “double dipping”, Rhoda is less effective than the average elected Assembly member.  In OVER ten (10) years, Jacobs has failed to INITIATE any new legislation.  Her track record shows that in the past decade, she has only piggy backed on other Assembly member’s new legislation, by co-sponsoring the bill.

Jacobs also added individuals, without consent, to her slate of delegates and county committee candidates for the Primary Ballot and was censored by the State Supreme Court. Ultimately, seven (7) of Jacobs’ County Committee candidates and one (1) Judicial Delegate was knocked off her ballot. All have testified that they did not give consent.  Some said they signed some sort of form and did not know that it would cause their names to be added to Assemblywoman Jacobs’ ballot to run for County Committee or Judicial Delegate. While others who did not sign, testified that they did not give consent. One person thought he was merely signing an endorsement for Jacobs. Another person said he had given consent to be on a different candidate’s slate. It was found that a Republican and someone who was no longer living in the District or even the State for that matter, was also on her petitions to appear on the ballot.

Judge Weston ordered that the seven (7) candidates for Democratic County Committee be “stricken from the ballot". One candidate for Delegate to the Judicial Convention from the 42nd AD was also stricken. Some of the candidates were elderly and/or disabled and Caribbean immigrants. One was even mentally challenged.

http://www.ourtimepress.com/upload/August162012sm.pdf

Are we to believe that a 34-year Elected Official did not know how to properly secure petitions? Residents also testified that this took place at Rhoda Jacob's District office. Elected officials are not permitted to use taxpayer funded district offices to run their campaigns. (See public records transcript- New York Supreme Court Case: Skinner Vs. Nelson August 1 and 2nd 2012)

http://politicker.com/2012/08/rhoda-jacobs-survives-tough-ballot-challenge/

Similarly, former candidate Zachary Lareche had legal proceedings brought  against him for fraud. Lareche is known for being a perennial candidate for Assembly in the 42nd District.

Lareche’s petitions had something no election specialist had ever seen before: Voter names and addresses pre-printed on petitions. Just as Rhoda Jacobs had knocked Lareche off the ballot in previous years, when Bichotte saw that some of her petition signers had allegedly signed Lareche’s petitions as well, she challenged them. A further review of the petitions revealed that the signatures of those carrying the petition did not match. The Bichotte campaign brought in Jeffrey Luber, a Board Certified Forensic Document Examiner from the Suffolk County Crime Laboratory. Luber found hundreds of instances where Board of Election voter cards on file did not match signatures on Lareche’s petitions. In addition, there were different signatures for one person who was the signing witness on his petitions.” Lareche ultimately withdrew from the race.  

www.haitiantimes.com/lareche-off-the-ballot-in-the-42nd-district/

Since the close of trial, Jacobs’ illegal conduct and her connection to those who have engaged in illegal and unethical conduct has become ever more evident. Rhoda Jacobs is being strongly supported by Vito Lopez. Lopez has recently been reprimanded by the Assembly after an internal investigation found evidence of sexual harassment allegations brought by two female staff members in his office.

Vito Lopez has teamed up with Rhoda Jacobs and Mary Hobson against challenger and current District Leader Hon. Bichotte. Remember Mary Hobson? She is the former District Leader who served for 18 years and who was thrown off the ballot in 2010 for not being able to secure a minimum of 500 petition signatures to be a candidate on the ballot. It should also be noted that these two incumbents are exploiting tax payers’ dollars to collect two salaries.

Rodneyse Bichotte takes her civic duty very seriously. Her work as District Leader has helped to raise the standard for both aspiring and veteran elected officials. Bichotte is a woman of the people, focused on bringing accountability back to the political process.

In recognition for her commitment to integrity, honesty, and transparency in good governance, the Citizen’s Union has formally endorsed Rodneyse Bichotte in her election for the 42nd Assembly District seat in Brooklyn N.Y.  The Citizen’s Union has a renewed and heightened public focus and interest towards ethics, good governance and reform. This means standards for preferred candidates is higher than ever”, stated Dick Dadey, the organizations’ Executive Director.” As a result, Citizen’s Union is formally endorsing challengers running against elected officials facing indictments and investigations.
(http://politicker.com/2012/08/citizens-union-endorses-challengers-to-ethically-challenged-incumbents/)

As the current Democratic State Committeewoman and Obama Delegate for the 2012 Democratic National Convention, Rodneyse Bichotte has shown a commitment to her constituents. She has fought for quality senior services and increasing the availability of affordable senior housing, stopping cuts to child care services, fighting for increased school funding and lobbying for passage of the New York State Dream Act. Bichotte promotes job creation, which includes increasing access to government contracts for small businesses, advocating for a minimum wage increase and fighting for workers’ rights to organize.

The 42nd District needs leadership for the new realities, not leadership that reflects dishonesty and a disconnect from the needs of the people.