In January 2020, New York State Assembly Member Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn was elected chair of the Brooklyn Democratic Party following a vote by district leaders, becoming the first Caribbean American woman to lead the organization.
During her tenure, Bichotte Hermelyn has focused on modernizing and expanding the party’s reach while pursuing structural reforms. As the first Black woman to lead the organization, she has been credited with raising the county party’s visibility and influence in local and national Democratic politics. Her efforts to rebuild the party have included expanding voter registration, increasing poll worker recruitment, and making its leadership more diverse and representative. She also led reforms to the party’s Judicial Screening Committee, creating a more transparent, merit-based judicial vetting process with greater community representation.
