Andy Cohen To West Village: Vote Deborah Glick Out Of Assembly

WEST VILLAGE, NY — Late-night television host Andy Cohen took to Twitter Wednesday night to make a strong statement about the upcoming West Village Assembly race.

Cohen, a West Village resident who hosts a late-night talk show on Bravo, tweeted to his 2.4 million followers to "show the door" to longtime incumbent Deborah Glick.

"Hey New Yorkers, Deborah Glick fought against surrogacy in NY," Cohen tweeted. "She's also opposed to outdoor dining. What gives? -- let's show her the door on the June 28th election. Make sure to VOTE (and vote early)!"

But a campaign representative for Glick — running against political newcomer Ryder Kessler for the 66th Assembly District in the June 28 Democratic primary — said Cohen has simplified the issues beyond recognition.

Her office also called out Cohen for criticizing Glick, who became the first openly gay New York legislator when she joined the Assembly in 1991.

"It’s surprising that a TV Personality, with little understanding of Deborah’s positions, is going out of their way to attack the first openly LGBTQ+ state legislator in New York history,” the representative said in an email.

Who's right? It's complicated.

Surrogacy

When it comes to surrogacy, Glick's office argues raising concerns about women's health and the affluence involved isn't the same as fighting against it.

Cohen — an active supporter of New York's law and the new father of a daughter born with help from a surrogate — says it is.

New York legalized the gestational surrogacy bill during the 2020 budget finalization after it failed to reach a vote in the Assembly in 2019 — with Glick as one of the chief critics.

“Due to her concern for Women’s health," Glick's team told Patch, "Deborah fought for the inclusion of a surrogate’s bill of rights in the legalization of surrogacy and then voted for it."

"Opponents to surrogacy, such as Gloria Steinem, raised concerns about the risks that accompany all pregnancies and promoted, along with Glick, a bill of rights they said would protect the health of surrogate mothers."

Glick also argued surrogacy is not the only marker for equality and that the issue was "clearly a problem for the extraordinarily well-heeled," reported the New York Times.

The average total cost of a surrogacy pregnancy hovers around $125,000, according to the surrogacy agency and law firm Creative Family Connections.

"It is pregnancy for a fee," Glick told the New York Times. "I find that commodification of women troubling."

But Cohen argues he could not have become 2-month old Lucy's father had the law failed to pass.

He was a vocal supporter of the Child Parent Security Act and traveled to Albany in 2020 to support the bill that established clear legal procedures to ensure that a child through surrogacy's relationship to their parents is a legally recognized one.

"Thank you to my rock star surrogate (ALL surrogates are rockstars, by the way) and everyone who helped make this miracle happen,"Cohen wrote in an Instagram post after the birth of his second child through surrogacy in April 2022.

"I'm so happy."

Outdoor Dining

Glick has been one of the few New York elected officials to speak against outdoor dining.

“This is about equity and sharing the streets fairly,” Glick said during a rally against outdoor dining in February 2022, reported The Village Sun. “There is no enforcement. We have to talk about equity. The only people who can eat at those sheds have money."

While Glick did support the program during the beginning of the pandemic, she has since argued that the permanent use of public space needs more of a review and that generally only well-to-do people even get to enjoy outdoor dining.

"Like everyone, Deborah supported emergency measures to save small businesses," Glick's representative said. "But a permanent giveaway of public space requires serious review of negative impacts."

Kessler

What's not complicated is how Kessler felt about receiving Cohen's support.

Kessler did not complain about matters being simplified, but publicly thanked Cohen and embraced the opportunity to reach the Bravo personality's followers on Twitter.

"Thanks @Andy! I'm a young(ish) @NYWFP-endorsed progressive gay guy running against her — pro-empowering all queer people, pro-outdoor dining and small business!"