Democratic Assembly Candidate Dan Norton is an Eviction Lawyer
The Binghamton Tenants Union has been operating since 2018. We are a small group of volunteers working to empower tenants, track the abuses of landlords, and advocate for increases in affordable housing. We hold public meetings every other week for tenants to organize together and we publish an annual list of Binghamton’s Worst Evictors (2025-2026 coming soon!). We usually don’t get involved in elections.
However, the upcoming Democratic primary (June 23rd) for Assembly District 123 between Dan Livingston and Dan Norton feels like a potential turning point for the future of politics in the Southern Tier. Rather than keep what we know to ourselves, we feel compelled to highlight a few details of the race that are being swept under the rug - specifically that Dan Norton is a corporate eviction attorney.
Norton has worked for Hinman, Howard, & Katell since 2013. BTU members have watched him litigate multiple cases in Landlord/Tenant Court, not once in the defense of a tenant. Most notably, Norton has represented Amicus Properties, a national real estate conglomerate that has turned over 100 single family homes on Binghamton’s West and North sides into rent-by-room arrangements that cater exclusively to students. Amicus has been featured on BTU’s Worst Evictors list. Norton has also represented local businessman Mark Yonaty, a vocal advocate against the rights of unhoused people.
In researching the cases he’s worked on since 2015, we found that Norton’s specialty seems to be foreclosing on people’s mortgages (40+ cases), suing seniors at nursing homes for more money (12 cases, 2 of them active), and filing lawsuits against local farmers for a multimillion dollar agribusiness enterprise (11 cases).
Additional cases include:
Defending a company against a worker who fell 16 feet because he wasn’t provided with scaffolding; and
Defending a hospital after they killed a patient by giving him the wrong medication; and many other cases representing large business interests Southern Tier:
Mirabito
Visions Federal Credit Union
GHS Federal Credit Union
Willow Run Foods
Don’t take our word for it. Look it up for yourself.
Norton proudly admits that Charlie Ackerman, whom he has also represented in court, is the person who pushed him to run for office. Ackerman is a sleazy real estate developer and party promoter who has become a force in the new wave of local Democratic Party politics because of his financial resources and ability to fundraise from his (mostly conservative) business connections. While presuming to represent a new generation of local Democratic elites, Norton and Ackerman are actually a classic archetype: the wealthy Democrat who sits on all the right boards, gives to the right charities, golfs with Republicans, preaches about “working across the aisle”, is “socially liberal but fiscally conservative,” and will sell-out their working-class supporters to corporate interests in a heartbeat once they get in office (see also: Josh Riley, Jason Garnar, Anthony Brindisi, et al).
Norton claims to be a lawyer fighting for the people but overwhelmingly represents business interests. He claims to believe that “housing is a human right” but has only ever worked to perpetuate forced displacement. When pressed, Norton has downplayed his role as an eviction attorney. He and his supporters will say “he is just doing his job.” As tenant advocates, we often hear this same justification from slumlords: “I’m providing a service. If I wasn’t exploiting these people, someone else would. If I didn’t house them in this rat-infested hovel, they’d be on the street.” Exploitation thrives on such rhetoric, and there’s no reason for us to believe he’d behave any differently in public service than he has in the private sector.
The old Democratic establishment is lining up behind Norton. Their case for him seems to boil down to the fact that he looks, talks, and acts like a politician - a superficial Ken doll who waxes eloquent about “understanding working families” and “supporting renters” but has thus far failed to receive the endorsement of either. We’re told he’s the most “electable” candidate. Is this truly the best we can expect? Have we not learned our lesson after the last 10 years of Democratic Party ineptitude in their “resistance” to Trump?
While Norton may find it convenient to co-opt “Housing is a human right” as a slogan, the Binghamton Tenants Union works everyday to make that statement a reality. We believe that housing affordability and stability can - and will - create a better Binghamton for everyone. We realize the prevailing attitude is that tenants - and Binghamtonians in general - should settle for less than we deserve. But “less than” is not - and should never be - acceptable. Those of us pushing for housing policies with the potential to impact real change are not interested in settling for status quo politicians who only look and act progressive when they’re running against rabid fascists. Tenants deserve more. We all deserve more.
Norton can pretend to be a “progressive” all he wants. But we’re not buying it. His record speaks for itself.