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WAMC To Broadcast Cuomo, Astorino Debate

WAMC photo by Dave Lucas

A debate between Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Republican Rob Astorino and two third-party candidates is likely to be the only opportunity voters have to see the candidates for New York governor interact before Election Day.

The hour-long exchange begins at 8 p.m. and airs on WAMC.  Capital New York reporter Jimmy Vielkind is headed out to Buffalo for the debate. He says listeners should pay attention to how Cuomo reacts to criticism from Astorino.

"Astorino has been trying to portray Cuomo as mean-spirited, and he knows that if he can get the governor to appear visibly frustrated to voters, something that many people on the political inside know, that the governor can be heavy-handed at times, will translate to the voters and hopefully inure in his benefit."

Green Party candidate Howie Hawkins and Libertarian Michael McDermott will participate as well.

"One thing Astorino has been doing throughout his campaign is trying to find the right balance between his criticisms of the incumbent and his own policy vision. It's unclear how we're going to see at the debate on Wednesday evening,but AStorino should offer at least some idea of what he would do as elected to present himself as a credible alternative to the incumbent," said Vielkind.

Dave Lucas is WAMC’s Capital Region Bureau Chief. Born and raised in Albany, he’s been involved in nearly every aspect of local radio since 1981. Before joining WAMC, Dave was a reporter and anchor at WGY in Schenectady. Prior to that he hosted talk shows on WYJB and WROW, including the 1999 series of overnight radio broadcasts tracking the JonBenet Ramsey murder case with a cast of callers and characters from all over the world via the internet. In 2012, Dave received a Communicator Award of Distinction for his WAMC news story "Fail: The NYS Flood Panel," which explores whether the damage from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee could have been prevented or at least curbed. Dave began his radio career as a “morning personality” at WABY in Albany.
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