Long Beach pols back Rice

Four Long Beach elected officials endorsed Democratic congressional candidate Kathleen Rice on Sunday in her contest against Republican-Conservative Bruce Blakeman — a Long Beach resident — to succeed retiring Rep. Carolyn McCarthy.

The support was announced at a press conference outside the home of City Councilman Anthony Eramo, recently rebuilt after being devastated by Hurricane Sandy. Rice spoke about the need to reduce red tape that has made it difficult for many residents to access federal funds for rebuilding their storm-damaged homes.

Sunday’s endorsements came from Eramo, Council President Scott Mandel, Vice President Fran Adelson, and Councilman Len Torres. 

“I’m so grateful to have the Council members joining our team on the ground to help spread our message and energize voters about the issues at stake in this election, and I look forward to working closely with them to continue rebuilding and helping residents return home,” said Rice. 

Eramo, whose family moved back into their rebuilt house just this summer, said, “Our house was destroyed during Sandy, and the last two years have not been much better. We waited on Albany and we waited on Washington, but they just kept us waiting, so eventually we had to use our retirement savings to rebuild.”

“Securing federal funding for Sandy aid has been a major part of our work on the City Council over the last two years,” said Mandel. “Kathleen’s shown she’s willing to stand up for what’s right, prosecuting sham contractors who have targeted Sandy victims and abused federal funding.”