The Menin era begins

Twenty-four hours before the New York City Council will vote to elect her as its next speaker, Council Member Julie Menin paced the near-empty council chambers, reciting the script for her inevitable victory. “I always like to do a run-through on everything,” Menin told City & State on Tuesday. “That’s just my nature.”

The City Council’s Charter Meeting on Wednesday will lack the pomp and circumstance of last week’s mayoral inauguration. It won’t draw thousands of New Yorkers. Lucy Dacus won’t be performing a socialist anthem. 

But while we may be living in Zohran Mamdani’s New York City, the democratic socialist mayor will soon be sharing City Hall with Speaker Julie Menin. A moderate Democrat representing Manhattan’s Upper East Side, Menin has had a winning coalition locked up since late November, defeating more progressive candidates for the council’s top role and stirring curiosity about where she will align with the new mayor and where she will challenge him. 

Just after 12 p.m., the council will vote by a commanding majority – if not a unanimous one – to elect her as speaker. (It’s still unclear if anyone will vote against Menin, but protest votes are always possible. Former City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams was elected by a vote of 49 to 2 in 2022, before being reelected unanimously two years later.)

A new council speaker also means shakeups within central staff. Menin is set to announce her full leadership team Wednesday afternoon. Miguelina Camilo, who has served as Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie’s counsel and unsuccessfully challenged state Sen. Gustavo Rivera in 2022, will be Menin’s chief of staff, according to three sources familiar. Council Member Kevin Riley’s chief of staff Simone Jones is also expected to join as deputy chief of staff. And Hotel and Gaming Trades Council political director Bhav Tibrewal will serve as chief adviser, after the labor union helped secure the speakership for Menin  Those expected appointments were first reported by the Daily News.

John-Carlo Bautista, currently with the Department for Citywide Administrative Services, is expected to join in an adviser role, according to the sources. Some of Adams’ top staffers have already headed for the exits, while others are questioning what, if any, role they might have in Menin’s central office. 

The new era for the council will also bring new committee assignments and leadership posts, with Menin’s early and pivotal backers, such as Linda Lee, Shaun Abreu and Riley expected to land plum gigs.

The council will also be formally receiving 19 vetoes Wednesday, made by former Mayor Eric Adams on his last day in office. That list includes several hotly debated bills, including one to expand a cap on street vending licenses and one giving nonprofits and other organizations a chance to purchase certain apartment buildings up for sale.

One of Menin’s first tests as speaker will be deciding which bills she would like to get the council to override with a two-thirds vote and which ones, if any, she’ll avoid. “We are going to be taking a very serious look at each and every one of them, and we’ll definitely be doing a significant number of overrides,” she said. The council will have 30 days from Wednesday to vote.

The new speaker could bring another big change: Menin pledged that the notoriously late City Council, where meetings routinely start an hour – or more – later than scheduled, will be on time.

“I am a stickler for punctuality,” she said. “Stated is going to start on time. We’re going to move Land Use and Finance (committee hearings) to the day before, and the stated meetings will start on time. We’re going to respect everyone’s time.”

This story has been updated to include Menin’s comments on Adams’ vetoes and the council’s timeliness.