Endorses Diaz Sr.'s Challenger

Carlos “Charlie” Ramos Jr. received a boost in his insurgent campaign to unseat New York state senator Ruben Diaz Sr. with an endorsement Thursday from El Diario La Prensa, the largest and oldest Spanish-language daily in New York City.

Ramos is challenging Diaz, the state legislature’s most outspoken gay rights opponent, in the Democratic primary for the South Bronx seat on September 14. Despite widespread support from LGBT groups, he has trailed in fund-raising compared to the incumbent Diaz, a Pentecostal minister from Puerto Rico.

El Diario said it was “impressed by Carlos Ramos’s deep commitment to a community agenda and his readiness to answer a call for responsible leadership.”

The endorsement added, “While the incumbent Sen. Ruben Diaz Sr. has received attention for opposing marriage equality legislation, Ramos says that his votes against community interests and silence on notorious landlords are among the other issues that compelled him to run.

“Diaz’s narrow-mindedness and grandstanding are inadequate for a district that deserves much more. The solid, consistent work of activists like Ramos would build up ample leaders and organizers poised to move a community forward.”

A recent campaign from Fight Back New York that connected Diaz to a variety of trouble shows how the race in the district turns on more than support for marriage equality.

Ramos, who brings experience in politics and organizing, most recently worked as the Bronx borough liaison for former New York City comptroller and 2009 mayoral candidate William C. Thompson Jr.