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By Jonathan P. Hicks

The New York Times, August 16, 2005

On the streets of East Harlem, there are the unmistakable signs of frenzied campaigning. The area is filled with campaign volunteers passing out fliers, and some of the candidates have taken to the streets in sound trucks, beseeching voters - in Spanish and English - to support them in the Sept. 13 primary.

The high-voltage level of the campaigning reflects the fact that five candidates are battling for an open City Council seat because the incumbent, Philip Reed, is barred by term limits from running. And all five candidates have some political experience, leaving the outcome utterly unpredictable.

Although Council District 8 is anchored in East Harlem - about 60 percent of the district's residents live there - it includes parts of the Upper West Side of Manhattan and the South Bronx. That, and the combination of candidates, make this race one of the most competitive in the city for this primary.

One candidate is Felipe Luciano, 57, a longtime radio personality and a television reporter and anchor who has a most unconventional history. Mr. Luciano was a gang leader in his youth, and served time for manslaughter in the fatal stabbing of a Brooklyn teenager in the early 1960's. After he was released from prison, he attended Queens College and wrote poetry with the Last Poets, three spoken-word artists.

Years later, Mr. Luciano went into television journalism and worked at a number of New York stations, first at WNBC and later at WNYW. Four years ago, he ran against Mr. Reed and lost by just two percentage points, or about 200 votes.

But this year's race is far more competitive than the one-on-one contest of 2001. Another candidate in the primary is Nelson Antonio Denis, 50, a Harvard- and Yale-educated lawyer who served four years in the State Assembly before losing in 2000. Mr. Denis ran unsuccessfully last year for a State Senate seat. But he is known in the district, where he has long operated a law office that offers residents a number of free services.

Another candidate is Joyce Johnson, 58, a former Democratic district leader and the director of operations for a charter school in the Bronx. Ms. Johnson, who once served as a special assistant to Ruth W. Messinger, the former Manhattan borough president, ran unsuccessfully for an Assembly seat three years ago.

And there is John Ruiz, 51, a Democratic Party district leader in East Harlem and a former firefighter.

One candidate who has received a great deal of attention and fund-raising support is Melissa Mark-Viverito, 34, a researcher for 1199/S.E.I.U., the large health care union. She has also worked as the director of the Hispanic Education and Legal Fund.

Two years ago, she ran against Mr. Reed and did not come as close to defeating him as Mr. Luciano did in 2001, finishing third in a six-candidate race. This year, however, Ms. Mark-Viverito is clearly seen as a force to be reckoned with, having been endorsed not only by 1199, but also Local 32BJ of the Service Employees International Union, which represents janitors; Unite Here, which represents hotel, restaurant and apparel workers; and the United Federation of Teachers.

And she has raised more than $72,000, as of the July filings with the New York City Campaign Finance Board. That is more than the $63,000 raised by Mr. Luciano and substantially more than other rivals.

The district is in three distinct pieces, with the majority being in East Harlem. But the part on the Upper West Side accounts for about 30 percent of the residents (and often more than 35 percent of the voters). And the Bronx part of the district represents about 10 percent.

"All three sections of the district have to be approached in different ways because the characteristics are different," Mr. Reed said. "And the candidate who wins is the candidate who will be able to appeal not only to his or her base, but to get a good number of votes in other parts of the district. And that's what makes this a competitive race."

Each of the candidates say that the top issue is housing, specifically the concerns of residents that they might be priced out of the district because of the development of upper-middle-class and luxury apartments. And they all have made it a staple of their platforms to call for developers to get community input on their plans.

As a result, the candidates take pains to try to differentiate themselves from their rivals in other ways. "My message is that Nelson has been here all the time," Mr. Denis said. "And that I will continue to work for this community."

Mr. Luciano said that the race "pits a son of East Harlem against people who are coming into the community but who are not really connected to it."

Ms. Johnson has a history of being active on the West Side. And with so many opponents coming from East Harlem, she could prevail in the same manner as Mr. Reed, who has endorsed her candidacy.

Many in the district wonder whether Ms. Johnson, who is black, might benefit from the presence of so many Hispanic candidates. The district is about 54 percent Hispanic and nearly 26 percent black, with white residents accounting for 15 percent.

But Mr. Luciano and Ms. Mark-Viverito have the benefits of well-honed campaign organizations from recent elections. Ms. Mark-Viverito has strong union support, and Mr. Luciano has a vast volunteer network and was endorsed by District Council 37, the city's largest union of municipal workers. Mr. Denis, meanwhile, has the recognition of his years in the Assembly.

"We're all working in all the parts of the district," Ms. Johnson said. "But all the candidates know that you can't just win with the West Side, the South Bronx or the East Side. We have to take our message to everyone in the district."