New York City Elections: Update
June 22nd’s election were a turning point in NYC local politics: with more diverse candidates running to make substantive improvements around issues like gentrification, police reform, and COVID-19 relief, the residents of NYC ushered in a new era of true progressive reform that benefits the many rather than the few.
Now that results are in, we are proud to celebrate the Democratic primary wins and presumptive new members of the city council! In all, 17 RFS candidates won their primaries!
This is a BFD: with the wins we know that at least 15 RFS-endorsed candidates will be members of the NYC Council in 2022. Take a look at our winners list and see how you can support our remaining two candidates with general elections this November!
2022 NYC Presumptive Councilmembers
1. Christopher Marte — New York City Council, District 1
Christopher Marte has been on the frontlines of the major issues in Lower Manhattan for the past 5 years, especially when it comes to overdevelopment and displacement. He has worked with his community to stop the development of luxury towers, which could displace thousands of tenants and small businesses. Since COVID started, Christopher has worked to create a network of donors and volunteers to distribute food and PPE to homebound seniors and low-income families and workers.
2. Marjorie Velázquez — New York City Council, District 13
Marjorie Velázquez was born in the Bronx to Puerto Rican parents who moved here in the 1970’s to build a better life. She learned the values of hard work and community services at a young age as her parents worked long hours while struggling to overcome racism and language barriers. Marjorie serves on the boards of Amplify Her, the Broad Room, St. Joseph’s School for the Deaf Children’s Fund, VISIONS NY, and formerly on the Bronx River Alliance.
After a narrow loss for City Council in 2017 where Marjorie was outspent by over $1 million, she continued her dedication to public service and advocacy. During the pandemic, she organized a mutual aid group to assist residents and coordinated weekly food and mask drives.
3. Pierina Sanchez — New York City Council, District 14
Pierina Sanchez is an Afro-Dominicana, daughter of immigrants, and lifelong Bronxite. She learned the value of hard work at an early age — watching her elders sell oranges, drive taxis, clean buildings and schools — to ensure she and her generation had a chance at higher education and opportunity in this country. Pierina has been guided by the values that those closest to the problems must be closest to the solutions; those being pushed out should be brought in; the voices being silenced must be heard; those who have been historically excluded, silenced — womxn, people of color, people with disabilities, members of the LGBTQIA+ community — should be the change agents and decision makers.
4. Althea Stevens — New York City Council, District 16
Althea Stevens is a proud New York native and a respected community advocate for the Bronx. As a dedicated single mother, she works hard to create a sustainable future for her child and for all children and families who live in under-resourced neighborhoods. Althea began her career in civic service more than 15 years ago working for non-profit agencies and community centers that focused on giving a voice to the most vulnerable populations. She organized voting rights information sessions, led strategy workshops to address gang policing and created annual youth forums and community celebrations to bridge relationships between residents and neighborhood partners.
5. Amanda Farías — New York City Council, District 18
Amanda Farías is a lifelong Bronxite with a passion and commitment to public service. Amanda’s political career began by fighting voter suppression and mobilizing Black and Latino communities for President Barack Obama’s 2012 re-election campaign. She decided to run for New York City Council in 2017 as the youngest person, and the only woman, in a five-way race; and came in as the runner-up in her Democratic Primary for City Council District 18. After the election, Amanda remained committed to fighting for progressive leadership. In the Summer of 2018, she ran to be her District’s State Committeewoman, and won by 86 votes, defeating a 21-year incumbent.
6. Tiffany Cabán — New York City Council, District 22
Tiffany Cabán is a 33-year-old public defender, organizer, activist, and queer Latina who previously ran for Queens County’s District Attorney, with the support of progressives like Alexandria Ocasio Cortez and Bernie Sanders. Tiffany’s goal as as councilmember is to ensure New York reaches its full progressive potential: bringing forth changes around affordable housing, police brutality, healthcare, and gentrification.
7. Shekar Krishnan — New York City Council, District 25
Civil rights lawyer and local Democratic club president Shekar Krishnan is working to amplify the voices of those frequently unheard by powerful institutions. Shekar is the co-founder of Communities Resist, a legal services organization that takes a community-rooted, intersectional approach to housing and racial justice in North Brooklyn and Queens.
8. Nantasha Williams — New York City Council, District 27
Nantasha Williams is a community leader, advocate, and political organizer committed to affecting change in her community. Nationally recognized as a political strategist, she dedicates her life in service to marginalized communities throughout the country. In 2014, she was appointed the Executive Director of the New York State Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic and Asian Legislative Caucus (“the Caucus”) one of the largest and most influential political entities in the State of New York.
9 .Selvena Brooks-Powers — New York City Council, District 31
A lifelong resident of Southeast Queens, Selvena Brooks-Powers has devoted her life to fighting and delivering for women and working people. She is the proud daughter of immigrants from Jamaica, West Indies. Selvena’s reputation as an effective leader and credible community organizer comes from years of high-impact initiatives on critical issues, including education, voter empowerment, racial and economic justice, M/WBE opportunities, domestic violence and workers’ rights. Earlier this year, Selvena won a special election for the same seat and with June 22nd’s victory, has secured another progressive stronghold in Queens!
10. Lincoln Restler — New York City Council, District 33
Lincoln Restler is an outspoken leader in the effort to clean up Brooklyn politics having helped found reform club New Kings Democrats and beating the Brooklyn machine to win a District Leader race to represent Greenpoint and Williamsburg. Lincoln has deep experience across 10 years in city government, spearheading implementation of IDNYC, the city’s municipal identification card program, and a number of anti-poverty initiatives. Deeply rooted in his community, Lincoln most recently worked at St Nicks Alliance, the largest youth and senior services provider in North Brooklyn.
11. Jennifer Gutierrez — New York City Council, District 34
Jennifer Gutierrez was born and raised in Queens to parents who migrated from Colombia. She began her tenure at the New York City Council in 2013 as the community organizer for Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Currently, as a Chief of Staff, Jennifer has organized around issues that impact her neighbors such as housing, equity in education, environmental justice and public safety. She has led six successful cycles of Participatory Budgeting with over 8,000 residents participating and close to $6.5 million dedicated to community projects.
12. Crystal Hudson — New York City Council, District 35
Crystal Hudson is a public servant and community organizer committed to advancing change for the 35th District in Brooklyn, New York. Crystal’s commitment to public service is personal and began when her mother started exhibiting signs of Alzheimer’s disease. As the only child of a single mother, Crystal quickly became the primary caregiver for her mother and experienced first-hand how difficult it is for working families to navigate complex systems to access services and resources needed to keep older New Yorkers safe and healthy at home.
13. Chi Ossé — New York City Council, District 36
Chi Ossé is a third-generation Brooklynite, activist, and political candidate from Crown Heights. Ossé is a prominent figure in the revitalization of the Black Lives Matter Movement, marching alongside the activist collective Warriors in the Garden. Understanding that the NYC City Council is tasked with governing NYC’s vital and important systems, Ossé decided to take it upon himself to run for office and fight against the inequities that are visible in his community.
14. Sandy Nurse — New York City Council, District 37
Sandy Nurse is a Panamanian-born Afro-Latina who founded BK Rot, a bike-powered compost service. After working in Haiti for the UN, Sandy moved to Brooklyn in 2010 and worked as a carpenter, retrofitting homes for energy efficiency. Sandy’s platform centered around empowering residents with tools that enable them to push back against gentrification.
15. Shahana Hanif — New York City Council, District 38
Shahana Hanif is a disability and women’s rights activist born and raised in Brooklyn. As a teenager, Shahana was diagnosed with lupus and began a life-long quest to make NYC more handicap accessible and inclusive for people with disabilities. Shahana was also profiled in the New York Times for her work helping a young Bangladeshi woman escape from an abusive forced marriage to safety in a culturally-aware shelter. Shahana will be the first South Asian and Muslim woman on the council.
CANDIDATES WITH GENERAL ELECTIONS
Felicia Singh — New York City Council, District 32
General Election: November 20, 2021
Volunteer For Felicia!
Felicia Singh is an educator and activist raised in Ozone Park by working-class immigrant parents. Felicia’s career has been grounded in her commitment to empowering communities, including spearheading voter registration drives and community service projects, while serving as Vice-President of Our Neighbors Civic Association of Ozone Park. Felicia was inspired to run after witnessing her community rally around her sister as she battled cancer. If elected, she’ll be flipping Queens’ 32nd district blue!
Olivia Drabczyk — New York City Council, District 51
General Election: November 20, 2021
Volunteer For Olivia!
Volunteer For Olivia!
Olivia is a single mother and special education teacher with a background in mental health counseling and inclusive education. Olivia’s public service has been in the classroom and her vision for New York City is one in which those mean something. She is committed to ensuring the South Shore of Staten Island receives its fair share of resources, representation, and support from City Hall, and is dedicated to developing greater political engagement and civic literacy across the district.
Olivia’s top priorities include revitalizing restaurants and small businesses, increasing investments in free and affordable childcare and disability services, greater access to transportation and safer roads and sidewalks, and prioritizing trauma-informed approaches to addressing addiction, mental health struggles, and domestic violence.
