Freddie Eyeing Southern Brooklyn Does the departure of Bruce Bender from Council Speaker Peter Vallone's staff open the door for Bronx Borough President Fernando Ferrer in southern Brooklyn? According to sources, it sure does. Bender, formerly Vallone's chief of staff, was let go in less than amiable fashion after Vallone's aides became concerned that Bender was more loyal to Councilmember Herb Berman. Bender, a longtime ally and friend of Berman's, is now a senior political advisor to Berman's campaign for comptroller. Bender will also do some work for Vallone's mayoral campaign.

Prior to Bender's departure, it was virtually a lock that the Thomas Jefferson Club would support Vallone for mayor. But now that's not such a sure thing, and the next man in line is Ferrer, who is a friend and former Council colleague of Berman's. White support from southern Brooklyn would be big for the Bronx borough president, who is counting on only a small portion of the white vote citywide to win the race. But Ferrer's neutrality in the race between Rep. Elliot Engel and State Senator Larry Seabrook put off at least one southern Brooklyn Democrat-District Leader Michael Geller.

"It makes Freddie a much more difficult candidate to get people excited about in our neck of the woods," said Geller. Geller's heavily Jewish district saw Ferrer's pass on the Engel race as pandering to the black vote. "We can't rule him out, but I was very enthusiastic, and now my enthusiasm is tempered somewhat," said Geller. Geller added that the club is a hair away from backing Councilmember Stephen DiBrienza for public advocate. "We're close to giving a commitment to him. The club likes him very much," he said.

Five Ballot Lines Fail Maslow Assemblymember Frank Seddio fared impressively against a challenger who was listed on five lines on the general election ballot. Lori Sue Maslow, a teacher and the wife of Republican elections lawyer Aaron Maslow, took 24 percent of the vote to Seddio's 76 percent. Seddio ran only on the Democratic line. Insiders say that Maslow ran a vigorous and well-financed campaign, sending out eight district wide mailings and posting workers with palm cards outside most of the polls. Because she had such a diversity of lines, she was also able to appeal to black voters in Canarsie as the Working Families Party candidate, and to white voters in Bergen Beach as a Republican candidate. In addition to those two lines, she also had the Conservative line, the Green Party line and the Independence line.

She was able to snag the Working Families Party line and Green Party line because of an obscure rule governing the requirements for candidates of parties that have newly secured ballot lines. Seddio's resounding victory against such an opponent will also allow him to make a strong case to Speaker Sheldon Silver that his district should not be tampered with too much during the upcoming reapportionment.

Alexis Weighing Council Option Anthony Alexis, the legislative director for Councilmember Tracy Boyland, is eyeing a run for City Council in the 45th District. The seat is currently held by Lloyd Henry, who is term-limited. "I'm looking at my options in government," said Alexis. "There is no official announcement yet." Alexis would join a field that already includes Flatlands civic leader Sam Palmer and Vaughan Toney, chief of staff for Henry.

Quote Of The Week One local insider, who shall remain anonymous, had this to say about the irony of the Florida debacle: "The first time a Jew runs for vice president in the history of the United States, and he's defeated by Jews in Palm Beach voting for Pat Buchanan."

Taking The High Road The Kings Highway Democrats are kings no more. The club is shedding the moniker it has held since 1914 because it no longer has a Kings Highway address. The club, now located on Coney Island Avenue, will instead be called the High-Way Democratic Club. "We don't like to lose the name because of its 86 years of history, but on the other hand we like to think of ourselves in a different light," said Michael Geller.

How'd He Do That? Apparently Rep. Anthony Weiner is able to conquer one of the greatest and most frustrating bureaucracies in the world-the cable company. The Sheepshead Bay congressman outfitted at least two Democratic clubs in his district with 55-inch televisions and cable so that he could roam around and watch the results roll in on election night. The kicker is that Weiner was able to get cable installed within one day, according to Bernie Catcher of the Thomas Jefferson Democratic Club.

"I now believe that Anthony Weiner can do anything," said Catcher, who, like most of us, is used to waiting up to a week for the cable company to arrive. "Congressman Weiner cooperates with Democratic clubs throughout his district in many different ways," said Weiner spokesperson Serena Torrey. No quip from the normally loquacious congressman? "We'll have plenty of time for jokes in the next two years," said Torrey. Any hard feelings between Weiner and the Jefferson Dems, who boycotted Weiner's post-primary victory party, appear to have mellowed, as Weiner spent several hours at the club on election night.

Sal's Out Former Bay Ridge Councilmember Sal Albenese withdrew from the mayoral race last week, citing his inability to raise enough money to remain competitive among the multi-million dollar candidates. "I sat down with my advisors and looked at the dollars that are needed to make this a viable effort, and the numbers just didn't add up. I felt it was wrong to take my supporters on a suicide mission," said Albenese. He added that he most likely will endorse a candidate in the race, but hasn't chosen one yet.

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