Gotham Gazette

The Place for New York Policy and politics

Bill Perkins

Bill Perkins

  • WATCH: City Council District 9 Democratic Primary Debate

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    City Council District 9 primary debate


    Nine of the candidates running in the Democratic primary for City Council District 9, which is mostly made up of Central Harlem in Manhattan, met for a zoom debate hosted by Manhattan Neighborhood Network and moderated by Gotham Gazette editor Ben Max. Participating candidates included William Allen, Cordell Cleare, Joshua Clennon, Pierre Gooding, Kristin Richardson Jordan, Ruth McDaniels, Athena Moore, Mario Rosser, and Keith Taylor. McDaniels had to leave part-way through the debate. Incumbent Council Member Bill Perkins

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  • Holland to Challenge Perkins in Primary for Harlem Council Seat

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    Marvin Holland (Photo via Holland's campaign)


    Union organizer Marvin Holland, the runner up in Tuesday’s special election for the District 9 City Council seat, has confirmed to Gotham Gazette that he will mount a challenge against the winner Bill Perkins when the seat is up for grabs again later this year.

    The District 9 seat in Harlem was recently vacated by Inez Dickens, who was elected to the state Assembly, leaving just one year left in the term. A nonpartisan special election for the seat was held on Feb. 14 with nine candidates on the ballot. State Senator

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  • Special Election for Harlem City Council Seat Kicks Off

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    Council candidate Marvin Holland, right, with Sylvia Tyler (photo via Holland on Twitter)


    It’s going to be a sprint of an election -- though it’s not clear how many candidates are running or how many voters will participate -- with ballots likely to be cast sometime in February.

    The election of New York City Council Member Inez Dickens to the State Assembly creates an open seat in Council District 9 in Harlem, and a number of contenders have thrown their hats in the ring. As soon as Dickens officially vacates her Council seat, Mayor

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  • Keith Wright Weighs Options Amid Uptown Power Shifts

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    Keith Wright and Inez Dickens (photo via Wright's Assembly page)


    Before Assemblymember Keith Wright had conceded to Sen. Adriano Espaillat in their congressional race, speculation had already begun about which seat Wright would seek next if not victorious. Wright eliminated one option when he pledged in the heat of the race to replace retiring Rep. Charles Rangel that he would not seek reelection to the Assembly seat he has held since 1992. Wright challenged Espaillat to do the same

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  • Senate Holds Second Mayoral Control Hearing, Without the Mayor

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    De Blasio at City Hall on Wednesday (photo: Demetrius Freeman/Mayor's Office)


    Just one day after Mayor Bill de Blasio appeared at City Hall with a bevy of business leaders to push for extending mayoral control of New York City schools, the state Senate education committee held its second hearing on the issue right across the street. Administration officials, education professionals and advocates testified to make their case for and against mayoral control (mostly for) as state Senators demanded answers on a wide range of educational

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  • In Albany, De Blasio Argues for Mayoral Control Extension

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    De Blasio testifies in Albany (photo via @KellyCummings)


    Mayor Bill de Blasio received a generally friendly welcome from Senate Republicans throughout several hours of testimony in Albany on Wednesday during a hearing on mayoral control of city schools. De Blasio was peppered with questions regarding issues such as special education, charter school co-locations, mental health services, and school space, but the issue of mayoral control as a governance structure was addressed head on only in limited doses.

    For his part, de Blasio touted gains in

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