Of note: Quiroz vs. Dromm? PLUS: Doug's question for the Republican presidential candidates

Been a while since I wrote about local politics but a post today by The Politicker's Azi Paybarah certainly caught my attention:

Are two openly gay candidates about to duke it out in my district in the next city council elections?

Danny Dromm who I met more than a decade ago when we both were on the founding board of the Queens Pride House - and is currently a Democratic District Leader - certainly has spent some time trying to build some support from the Queens Democratic establishment (including Queens Congressman Joseph Crowley) as well as some of the LGBT political leaders outside the borough (most recently Christopher Murray, Dan Tietz, Alan Fleishman and Gary Parker from Brooklyn's Lambda Independent Democrats tried to organize a fundraiser for Dromm though it was canceled due to a scheduling conflict).

It could also be said that Dromm has been nurtured by City Council Speaker Christine Quinn (who I actually have loved in a platonic, politicky kind of way as far back as when she used to be Senator Tom Duane's Chief of Staff).

She certainly hasn't endorsed anyone at this early date but her name often pops up in invites supporting Dromm as Distric Leader (Danny and I actually were invited to have breakfast with Mayor Michael Bloomberg - along with other political leaders - to discuss civil marriage rights for same-sex couples at the City Council Speaker's suggestion back in March of 2006).

With the current term limits law Helen Sears, my current representative to the City Council, will be vacating her seat and leaving it wide open in the next elections which explains Dromm's intention to run for the seat.

But Azi's post today raises the intriguing possibility that another openly gay candidate might enter the race for the same seat and it happens to be - gulp! - none other than Helen Sears' former Chief of Staff - and Queens man-about-town - Alfonso Quiroz (pictured), who also has deep-rooted connections to the city-wide politirati and might draw some interesting endorsements and supporters should he decide to go for it (mind you, this is all tawdry rumor-mongering at this point in time but I certainly know who I'd back between the two of them).

Officially the Quiroz man has expressed interest in a District Leader post, NOT a city council seat. But the Politicker's analysis is - at the very least - intriguing.

Not that if he decides to run he'll be doing so in a vacuum along with Dromm. Other rumored potential candidates for the seat include Stuart Sears (son! of! Helen!), Eddie Giraldo (the former president of the Queens Hispanic Chamber of Commerce), Vasantrai M. Ghandi (Chair of the Queens Community Board 3) and perhaps Luis Rosero who has unsuccessfully sought political office in Queens before (UPDATE: A reader says that Eddie Giraldo might not be interested in running while Bryan Pu-Folkes, who has previously ran for the same seat might be back this time around as well).

Doug Robinson's YouTube question for the Republican presidential candidates: In the meantime, my friend Doug Robinson has submitted a YouTube video for tomorrow's Republican CNN/YouTube debate. I'm not sure it has been chosen for airplay but it IS worth airing - which is why I have posted it below as well.