Council Member Domenic Recchia (D-Brooklyn) is showing signs he is serious about running for Congress against Rep. Vito Fossella (R-Staten Island/Brooklyn). He is developing a campaign staff. He has out-raised his likely primary opponent, Brooklyn lawyer Steve Harrison. And his presence is growing on Staten Island—some have even taken to calling him Coney Island Dom, he said.

Unlike Harrison, however, Recchia has yet to put up a campaign website or rack up Democratic club endorsements. Nor has he moved into the district—though he currently lives only 20 feet outside the boundary, though he does not legally have to reside in the district in order to run for or serve as its member of Congress.

Many people expected him to do all of this by now. He himself said last October that he planned to raise a threshold $500,000 by Christmas, though at year’s end he filed donations of just $220,770 with the Federal Elections Commission.

He has backed off of hard deadlines.

“There’s no rush,” he said.

Before making his candidacy official, Recchia wants to have his campaign apparatus fully organized.

“You can’t just wake up and say ‘I’m running for Congress,’” Recchia said. “When you’re prepared, you’ll win.”

Though Recchia’s opponents have used his out-of-district address against him, he has brushed off these comments. His Council district covers a large portion of the Brooklyn side of the Congressional district, he notes, and for years he has delivered funds to Staten Island as chair of the Cultural Affairs Committee.

“No one says to me when I bring the money in, ‘Hey Councilman Recchia, when are you moving into the district?’” Recchia said.

However, he said that if he wins the seat, he would strongly consider moving into the district.

Despite putting off an official announcement, Recchia has already received the backing of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), which has prioritized the race. Fossella has proven a strong opponent in the past, but with strong Democratic trends in New York and the presidential election this year, they are speaking confidently about this year’s election. The federal investigation into Fossella’s ex-campaign treasurer, Chris Ward, makes them even more hopeful.

“The Republicans have a huge problem now—they’re fundraising under a cloud,” said Rep. Steve Israel (D-Nassau/Suffolk), head of Northeast recruiting for the DCCC.

Fossella spokesperson Georgea Kaye said the Ward investigation will not affect the campaign.

With the National Republican Congressional Committee expected to put money into the race to protect the seat, Israel said Democrats need a candidate who can keep up with Fossella’s fundraising and can deliver a winning message.

“Nobody’s ever argued that this is a slam dunk for Democrats,” Israel said. “This is going to be hard.”

The party has all but ignored Harrison, whom DCCC chair Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Maryland) referred to at a February campaign only as “another candidate” in the race. By contrast, Recchia, Van Hollen said, is a “candidate we think is a really good fit.”

“More importantly,” he added, “the people in his district think he’s a really good fit.”

Though Israel said that campaigning early often helps candidates looking to oust incumbents, he is confident that the delay will not hamper Recchia.

“In a normal political climate, waiting for a long time could be a disadvantage, but—and this is a big but—this is not a normal political environment,” Israel said. “The Democrats are revved up.”

Recchia has previously said Harrison should have started running immediately after his 2006 defeat, when he was the Democratic nominee.
Harrison, however, insisted that running too early, he said, “shows certain disrespect to voters.”

Harrison formally announced his 2008 bid last August. He has since put together a full campaign and has leases for campaign offices. He believes he started with more than enough time, but that the time has passed for a candidate to be able to enter the race and succeed.

“When it’s more than a year and a quarter out into the election, that should be a sufficient amount of time to put your resources together,” Harrison said. “If you’re just starting right now putting your campaign staff together, you’re late.”

Assembly Member Vito Lopez, the Brooklyn Democratic leader who has long been in Recchia’s corner for the potential primary match-up, said that when Recchia reaches his $500,000 fundraising goal, matching funds from the DCCC will put Recchia’s campaign in the million-dollar range. That will immediately catapult Recchia into the next phase of his campaign.

“Domenic is right on target,” Lopez said. “He’s not waiting too long.”

Lopez said Recchia is courting elected officials while building support throughout the district.

“He’s putting time into this and building relationships,” Lopez said.

So while there may not be an official campaign operation in place, Lopez said, there is certainly a campaign underway.

“These are things that he is nursing and developing,” he said.