The venue was the Beaux Arts lobby of Surrogate’s Court, near City Hall, recognizable to any “Law & Order” fan. The day of the show, thirty-three models, each bearing or wearing their runway outfit, reported for hair and makeup to a third-floor room with vending machines in it. The Manhattan borough president, Mark Levine, removed himself from diva consideration on arrival. “I had to say ‘I’m a model’ on my way in,” he admitted. “And I nearly choked.” The former congresswoman Carolyn Maloney, celebrated for having worn a Fire Department of New York jacket in her official portrait, edged closer to diva status. Modelling a soft leather biker jacket by Karolina Zmarlak with a veil over her face, she commented to a reporter that the fashion show was “inside baseball” and then entreated him to quote her on that, adding, “Interesting observation, right?” The assemblyman Al Taylor, dressed in a gray pin-striped suit by Rachel Richardson, and accessorized with a rhinestone brooch and a pink pocket square, was enjoying himself. “This is fun,” he said. “We’re in Surrogate’s Court and I’m not doing a paternity test!”journey-inline-newsletterinline-newsletter