The symbolism of William Boyland’s saga
8:35 am • 8 November 2011
Bill Hammond writes an op-ed in the Daily News chronicling the corruption charges against William Boyland Jr. and places them into the larger context of problems facing New York State:
His political career began with a fraud against democracy — when his father, William Boyland Sr., bequeathed him the Assembly seat in 2003 as if it were family property.
Which, in a sense, it has has been since 1977 — with Boyland Sr. inheriting it from his late brother, Thomas, in 1982.
Boyland Sr. resigned the post as soon as he took the oath of office in January 2003 — admitting at the time that he had run for reelection with the intention of quitting so his son could take over.
The plot worked like a charm. The next month, it took fewer than 1,200 votes for Junior to win a joke of a special election marked by pathetic turnout of 2.5%.
