The question of which party will control the New York state Senate has finally been answered. Sort of.
Senate Republicans will share the reins with the breakaway Independent Democratic Conference, leaders from both conferences announced on Tuesday. The post of Senate president will alternate every two weeks between Republican conference leader Dean Skelos from Nassau County, and IDC head Jeff Klein, a Bronx Democrat. The IDC grew from four members to five on Tuesday, when former Democratic majority leader Malcolm Smith announced that he would join. That gave Mr. Klein leverage to strike this bargain with Mr. Skelos, as two Senate races are yet to be decided.
Both men will have control over the daily Senate agenda, the budget, appointments to state and local boards, and committee and leadership positions within the Senate. But whether that unprecedented process will work as smoothly as the deal makers predict is open to question.
The announcement comes a month after the election, and amid uncertainty over who will lead the chamber. Both Mr. Skelos and Mr. Klein hailed the deal as “historic” and a first, and said the partnership was in the interest of moving past the “dysfunction, gridlock and reckless fiscal policies of the previous Senate leadership.” (Their reference was to Democratic leader John Sampson, but he only took over the chamber leadership when Mr. Smith bombed in that position following the shift to Democratic control in January 2009.)
“Senator Klein has proven to be a thoughtful and effective leader, and I look forward to partnering with him to move this state forward,” Mr. Skelos said in a statement.
“Legislating is a deliberative, cooperative process—not a spectator sport,” Mr. Klein said. “[With the IDC] having dedicated the past two years to a serious, policy-driven agenda, this agreement delivers on the IDC’s pledge to become a permanent third conference within the state Senate and to have a major voice in all policy decisions moving forward. Having worked together over the past two years, I know that Senator Skelos is not only an effective leader, but is as committed as I am to delivering major bipartisan results for all New Yorkers.”
The official announcement included quotes from Mr. Smith, the other original three IDC members, and several key Senate Republicans. All praised the power-sharing agreement.
“I’m thrilled that today I’m not only joining the IDC, but I’m becoming an immediate part of this historic and bipartisan governing coalition,” said Mr. Smith, who is also hoping to run for New York City mayor on the Republican line. “Our state’s biggest issues are too important to address on a narrowly focused, partisan basis.”
Reactions from political insiders were swift and, for the most part, skeptical.
“I don’t see how it works,” said one Democratic consultant. The Democrats could try to challenge the arrangement, but the courts have largely deferred to the legislative bodies to work out their own leadership structure.
But Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who has distanced himself from Senate Democrats while stating publicly that he wishes to stay out of the chamber’s internal squabbles, could be convinced to support the new majority coalition, the consultant said.
“I think that as long as Skleinos (I think that’s what we’re calling it) can convince him that they can govern, he’ll be fine with it,” the source wrote in a chat session. Another source, a Democrat, claimed that Mr. Klein has been running ideas past Mr. Cuomo before moving forward.
(On Twitter, there was some debate over what portmanteau to use for the Klein-Skelos duo. Suggestions ranged from Skleinos to Sklein to Skleinavino, a nod to the IDC’s Sen. Diane Savino.)
The Senate Democrats, who for a month have been negotiating with Mr. Klein, reacted harshly to Tuesday afternoon’s news.
“This is not a coalition but a coup against all New Yorkers who voted for Democratic control of the Senate and a progressive state government,” said a spokesman. “Sadly, the real victims of today’s announcement are the people of our state, whose clearly expressed desire for progress on a host of issues will now be scuttled. Senate Democrats will remain fierce advocates for them and the issues New Yorkers want to see implemented like standing up for women’s health, passing real campaign finance reform, raising the minimum wage and enacting common sense gun laws.”
Some of those measures could still be passed; Mr. Klein is the prime sponsor of the minimum-wage bill. Republicans will have to pass some of the IDC’s bills in order to get IDC’s votes for legislation favored by the GOP.
Working Families Party leader Dan Cantor said the new coalition’s success should be judged based on whether these bills are ultimately approved.
“These are not trivial issues. Senator Klein has voiced support for them in the past, but his Republican partners stand against us on each one,” Mr. Cantor said in a statement. “The burden therefore rests on the shoulders of Senator Klein and the IDC to prove that they can deliver. If they can, then this coalition may yet be validated. But if they cannot, then we will hold them to account.”
Sen. Adriano Espaillat, D-Manhattan, issued a statement that refrained from criticizing the merger. “Though I proudly and actively campaigned for Democratic candidates throughout the state this year, election season is over,” he said. “It’s time for the real work to begin in pursuit of common sense, progressive policies that move New York state forward.”
The Democratic consultant argued that the minority conference would have had a stronger platform on which to negotiate had they replaced Mr. Sampson, whose leadership was a nonstarter for Mr. Klein’s group.
“I think that if the Dems wanted to have any chance of making this work, they needed to consolidate on a leader quicker than this,” the source said.
Bruce Gyory, another Democratic consultant and political science professor, noted that there was no precedent for this type of power-sharing arrangement, but that did not mean that it couldn’t work.
“To succeed, this coalition will do best if it produces legislation that meets both with popular approval and editorial support,” Mr. Gyory said. “If it leads to anemic production hewing to the politics of the lowest common denominator, it will face strains and ridicule.”
He added, “Bottom line is that coalitions are easier to form than maintain. But I sense most New Yorkers will hope that the productivity of Cuomo’s first two years as governor continues unabated.”
A third Democratic consultant, Michael Tobman, sounded a more tolerant note of the new deal. “Creativity is the foundation of innovative governing,” he said. “Let’s see how this works.”