As Speaker Race Heats Up, Gender Disparity in The City Council Is On Display

Monday, August 28, 2017

As Speaker Race Heats Up, Gender Disparity in The City Council Is On Display

There are at least eight candidates in the race to replace current New York City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, who is term-limited. Three of the candidates – Council members Corey Johnson, Ritchie Torres and Jimmy Van Bramer – are openly gay. Torres, Jumaane Williams, Robert Cornegy Jr., and Donovan Richards are members of the Council’s Black, Latino/a, and Asian Caucus. Speaker candidate Mark Levine is the chairman of the Jewish Caucus.

Yet among this diverse slate of contenders, there is not a single woman running to become the next speaker. City Councilwoman Julissa Ferreras-Copeland had been a frontrunner for the position, but made waves in June when she announced her decision to step down at the end of her term . . .

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