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Chou, 46, will face Republican Peter Koo, owner of a drugstore chain, in the general election. They are fighting for John Liu’s seat. Meanwhile, Liu is competing for the comptroller’s seat in a two-way Democratic runoff in two weeks.
Chou describes Koo as a friend with whom she has some philosophical differences. “The voters have to make a decision on who can best serve the community,” she said.
Aside from attracting the largest number of voters in her district, Chou raised the most money at nearly $320,000. “I’m an educator; people know I’m sincere,” she said. “The voters are intelligent and I won their friendship.”
She plans to continue her campaign of going door-to-door to see voters. “I want to meet the people and hear their concerns,” Chou said.
The District 20 race was contentious at best, with several of the candidates disparaging each other. Chou said she stayed out of the fray, although she, too, was a target for attack.
The main charges were that Chou is anti-Semitic and anti-white, which she denies. “I worked for Councilman David Weprin (D-Hollis) who is Jewish, and have many Jewish teacher friends,” she said.
Chou added she lived in a Jewish neighborhood and on one sabbath, a Jewish neighbor asked her to turn on the electricity at a nearby synagogue for the congregation. “They weren’t allowed to do it, so they asked me,” she said.
For the next two months, Chou is hoping for a clean, honest race that will allow voters to make up their minds based on the candidates’ positions on issues.
The mother of two grown children, she was educated in Taiwan and moved to Queens 23 years ago. She earned her master’s degree at St. John’s University and went on to teach at Mary Louis Academy in Jamaica Estates and Queensborough Community College in Bayside, where she is on leave of absence as an adjunct lecturer.
The educator established the Aim Tutoring Academy in 1996 and later founded and is president of the Chinese American Parent-Student Council of New York City, a group with 600 members.
Her resume includes numerous awards and she worked as a special assistant for two years for Weprin. That experience with the City Council gives her a boost up, Chou says.
A former resident of Bayside, she served on the District 26 school board for five years and later on the Community Education Council. She and her husband moved to Flushing last year.
With her education background, it’s no surprise that schools are one of Chou’s major concerns. She does not like Mayor Mike Bloomberg having so much control of the school system and believes parents must be a bigger part of the equation.
“The parents’ voice is not getting through,” Chou said. “It is not a good thing. Look at how much money is spent to get higher grades on tests.”
She would like to reduce class size and use high school students as volunteers to clean up the streets and do other projects as a way for them to earn school service credit. “They would influence their parents and it would be a huge impact for change in Flushing,” Chou said.
She wants to modernize and expand public transportation to reduce traffic congestion and add a bus terminal. “There are 22 bus routes in Flushing and no terminal,” Chou said. “We need a better system.”
Parking is another serious issue. Chou acknowledges there is never enough in the downtown area. She believes it could be handled better by utilizing a smart parking system that would indicate when spaces become available. “But first you need to re-evaluate the current conditions,” she said. “And a lot of parking regulations need to be reassessed.”
She favors development, but wants builders to take into consideration the infrastructure so as not to overtax the sewers, transit system, traffic and schools. “It’s a package. The City Council must be aware of development, must listen and then guide the community,” Chou said.
Her ties to parents undoubtedly played a part in her victory, especially since she had no major endorsements. Some pundits say the large number of Asian candidates split the vote, but her friend Assemblyman Mark Weprin (D-Little Neck) who won his District 23 City Council primary Tuesday, called Chou “smart and personable. She’s a great advocate and works tirelessly.”
