Minority Leader Dean Skelos, R-Rockville Center, was returned to the position of majority leader, the post he held until Democrats took control of the chamber after the November election.
Ordinarily, the majority leader and the Senate president positions are usually held by the same person, but Espada and Skelos are dividing the duties as part of their deal to take over the Senate leadership.
Espada, D-Bronx, who returned to Albany in January after a hiatus, said he is a voice for reform Democrats and that more reformers will be joining his lead. He and Sen. Hiram Monserrate of Queens joined the 30 Senate Republicans to remove all leadership put into place at the start of year when Sen. Malcolm Smith became the majority leader.
Led by an aggressive push by Sen. Thomas Libous, R-Binghamton, Republicans forced a resolution that resulted in the vote of Espada as temporary president for the rest of this year. Skelos was also named the vice president.
The Capitol was turned upside down by the move which ends the Democrats' six-month tenure as leaders of the Senate.
"I am a Democrat and I am in charge," said Espada who said he could not sit tight and allow Smith to lead the Senate. "We have been in a quagmire since Jan 7."
The plot to overthrow Smith was supported by Rochester billionaire Thomas Golisano, a three-time gubernatorial candidate and backer of several Senate candidates.
Libous was able to install Sen. George Winner, R-Elmira, to oversee the proceedings. He replaced Sen. Neil Breslin, D-Bethlehem, who had been officiating the Senate when Libous raised his surprise leadership resolution. Breslin was taken aback and had a hard time responding to the hand vote of 32 senators calling for a leadership change.
Eventually, Breslin recognized the vote and left with lawyer Keith St. John so that Republican lawyer Jack Casey and Winner could take the stage. After Espada and Skelos were sworn in, Libous won another resolution to restructure the powerful Rules Committee and cancel all chairmanships and committee appointments.
This is one of the more surprising events to occur in Albany in a long time, and that's saying something. Two Democrats, annoyed with the way that Senate Democrats have run things since they gained control of the chamber in January.
If the name Hiram Monserrate sounds familiar, it's because he was indicted on assaulting his girlfriend earlier this year and has been accused of similar acts in the past. Pedro Espada and Dean Skelos will be in a power sharing arrangement through the end of the year, but don't expect Senate Democrats to sit back and accept this situation.
In any event, consider this Tom Golisano's parting shot to state politics. He's already declared that he's leaving New York for a more tax friendly Florida, but he's financed candidates around the state. We'll see what the Democrats have in mind to combat this changed circumstance.
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