In the News

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Republican candidate for mayor, Paul Massey, campaigned at the Staten Island Ferry terminal in St. George Wednesday, meeting and greeting morning commuters as they waited for the ferry to arrive.

Massey started his day at 6 a.m., greeting Island-bound commuters at the Whitehall Ferry Terminal, before boarding the boat to St. George. He spent another hour meeting and greeting passengers on the boat, and commuters in St. George, before heading back to Manhattan.

ABOUT LAST NIGHT: In an overwhelmingly Democratic city, how do you introduce a Republican mayoral candidate whom most voters have never heard of? That was the question facing aides to real estate developer Paul Massey, who greeted commuters at 86th Street and Lexington Avenue, in the heart of the Upper East Side where support for incumbent Mayor Bill de Blasio is soft. One aide: “Meet Paul Massey. He’s running against Bill de Blasio!” An African-American man entering the train station on the southeast corner replied, “Good luck to you.” Later, another aide yelled: “Meet the next mayor of New York, Paul Massey.” Some people politely stopped to chat, and shake hands. Later, a return to the original: “Meet Paul Massey. He’s running against Bill de Blasio!” So, which worked better? Massey told a handful of reporters, “People are not focused as much on the political side, as [they are] on the current mayor. So, when you make it about a referendum on him, and them getting to meet me … There is a chord of discontent out there about this mayor, that … the public understanding of that is just coming out.” – Azi Paybarah

Republican mayoral candidate Paul Massey introduced himself to voters on the Upper East Side at a campaign event Monday, shaking hands outside the 86th Street and Lexington Avenue subway stop. Massey spoke with roughly three dozen people in the nearly half-hour he posted up near the street corner, sporting a dark blue suit and a broad smile on a stiflingly hot June day.

“Want to meet the next mayor of New York?” members of Massey’s staff asked commuters, most of whom rushed past, trying to lure them in for an introduction. Most passersby seemed to be confused about who Massey was, but the presence of cameras and press caught the attention of a few curious onlookers.

The 57-year-old real estate executive, accompanied by several staffers and volunteers who distributed campaign literature, frequently told those he spoke with about what he believes to be Mayor Bill de Blasio’s flaws, especially a splintered relationship with the NYPD and his inability to “consensus-build” with Governor Cuomo.

Paul Massey, a millionaire real estate executive, says he’s running to replace incumbent mayor Bill de Blasio because, in his view, the Democrat is incompetent and lazy.

“We have a complete lack of leadership, and we are headed back to the ungovernable, unmanageable years that preceded the 20 years of Rudy Giuliani and Michael Bloomberg,” Massey, one of two candidates running in the Republican primary for mayor, told Mishpacha during a recent interview at his campaign office on the 12th floor of a commercial building on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. “De Blasio is working part-time. He strolls in to work at noon, three days a week, and he campaigns out of a bar in Brooklyn. I think he’s incompetent, lazy, and very distracted. It seems like he doesn’t want the job. And in business, you hire the wrong manager, you get rid of him.”

Mayoral hopeful Paul Massey promised members of the Queens Public Transit Committee last Wednesday that, if sent to City Hall next year, he’ll work to alleviate traffic woes in the five boroughs.

“Every borough should be served by public transportation,” said Republican Massey at a Knights of Columbus Hall on Lefferts Boulevard in South Ozone Park. “When I first started campaigning, I heard nothing about traffic. Now, it’s all I hear about.”

Massey, who has the support of the Queens Republican Party and is backed by the Independence Party, called Mayor de Blasio a politician who “doesn’t think big” when it comes to transportation matters — though some of the issues the GOP hopeful discussed in Queens last week are controlled by the state, not the city.

“We haven’t been investing in our transportation infrastructure,” he said.

The decision by the Bronx Republican County Organization to endorse real estate executive and first-item candidate Paul Massey came Tuesday morning, after the group’s chairman saw the news of the deadly terrorist attack in Manchester, England that killed 22 people.

The chairman, Mike Rendino, a former New York City firefighter who rushed to ground zero on September 11, 2001 said the choice was clear after Monday’s deadly attack.

“I thought to myself, who would want to be in charge of running the city of New York,” Rendino said. “And I felt, clearly, Massey should be the person, who is best-suited to do it.”

Rendino said in an interview Wednesday afternoon that he “was not leaning Massey until I woke up Tuesday, to be honest with you,”

Rendino said he called Massey Tuesday morning to tell him of his decision, and added, “Being mayor of New York is not just about being the best manager. You are the heart and soul of New York City and I realized that on 9/11, having Rudy [Giuliani] as mayor and that is something you have to live up.”

Republican candidate for mayor Paul Massey sits down with Errol Louis to lay out his agenda and respond to some tough questions about his candidacy.

 

A few weeks after they traded barbs at a mayoral candidates forum, Paul Massey and Michel Faulkner traded endorsements Monday.

Massey backed Faulkner — who’s now running for controller — despite having donated repeatedly to his opponent, incumbent Scott Stringer. Massey most recently cut him a $2,500 check in November of 2014.

“Scott’s a nice guy, I like him very much. I think it’s time for a change,” Massey said. “Michael Faulkner is the perfect guy for that job. He’s got my complete endorsement.”

Real estate businessman Paul Massey believes he is better suited to run the city than Mayor Bill de Blasio.

As CBS2’s Hazel Sanchez reported, Massey, 57, laid out his plans to make the city safer on Monday.

Massey took to the steps of City Hall Monday, accepting the endorsement of the Rev. Michael Faulkner – the Republican candidate for comptroller – and then quickly took aim at Mayor Bill de Blasio.

“We’ve got a mayor who is corrupt,” Massey said. “He has to go, and Michael and I are going to make that happen.”

Republican mayoral candidate Paul Massey will unveil his criminal justice platform Monday — calling for more cops, more cameras and more cash for first responders who live where they work, the Daily News has learned.

“Our police and first responders deserve a mayor who always has their back,” Massey said in a statement. “I will be that mayor.”