As expected, Manhattan City Councilman Corey Johnson was elected New York City Speaker today in a nearly unanimous 48-1 vote.
Johnson secured the vote of the entire city council body with the exception Councilmember Inez Barron (D-East New York), who voted for herself, and Councilmember Jumaane Williams (D-Flatbush, East Flatbush, Midwood), who opted to attend Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s State of the State in Albany instead.
“I want to say thank you for my friends and my colleagues, said Johnson. “I want to thank you all for your support. Words cannot express how honored and humbled I am by the confidence that you’ve placed in me.”
But the entire body did not support the newly elected speaker. Barron, who maintained the lone vote against Johnson, channeled former presidential candidate and congress member, Shirley Chisholm during her self-nominating speech.
“It’s time for a black speaker,” said Barron. “White men, white women and a Latina have been speaker, but we have never had a black speaker, in this a city where black, Latino and Asian are the majority.” said Barron.
Several of Barron’s supporters left the meeting midway through the vote, including former Councilmember, husband to Inez and current Assemblyman Charles Barron (D-East New York).
Williams, who opposed Johnson in the speaker race and a member of the Black, Latino and Asian Caucus released a statement this morning finally conceding.
“I look forward to collaborating with Council Member Johnson in his new role on many issues, including elevating the concerns of marginalized communities and working to solve the problems that we must all face together in the next four years,” Williams wrote.
Other Brooklyn and Queens lawmakers, however, were in consensus with their decision to support the new speaker. Councilmember Laurie Cumbo (D-Ft. Greene, Clinton Hill, Prospect Heights, Crown Heights) nominated the speaker, but not before expressing her disapproval of what she said were attacks on Johnson’s identity. Cumbo also took a moment to criticize the process in which the Black, Latino and Asian Caucus processes in bringing forth a candidate.
“In our body of the Black, Latino and Asian Caucus, we had seven members running,” said Cumbo. “If we wanted to be serious about the candidate emerging from our body, we should have proposed to elect one person that we would have all stood behind for the last year to get to that particular place.”
Queens City Councilwoman Karen Koslowitz (D-Regao Park, Forest Hills) was first to second the nomination, with Brooklyn Council Members Robert Cornegy Jr. (D-Bed-Stuy, Northern Crown Heights) and Mark Treyger (D-Bensonhurst, Gravesend, Coney Island) also seconding the nomination. Cornegy originally opposed Johnson in the speaker race.
“Everyone who knows Corey, knows that he is hard-working, intelligent and unbelievably driven. Most importantly he’s a fighter,” said Treyger, noting the strides the speaker has made with the LGBTQ community.
Johnson is the first openly gay speaker of the New York City council and has been open about his HIV status as well as his battles with addiction. The 35-year old is a Massachusetts native who came to New York City at the age of 19.
