Campaign Confidential

Justin Brannan is running for speaker, did you hear?

The son of Bay Ridge has laid the foundation for a competitive campaign for City Council speaker.

New York City Council Member and speaker candidate Justin Brannan.

New York City Council Member and speaker candidate Justin Brannan. John McCarten/New York City Council

There’s a lot we already know about the next New York City Council when it convenes in January. It will likely have women as a majority, more Latino members than ever and a new progressive wing that will include some of the furthest left members the city has seen yet.

But one unknown about the 2022 council – in addition to a handful of somewhat competitive general elections next month – is who will lead this history-making body. While the City Council speaker is technically elected by the council’s 51 members, the race has traditionally been one in which county party leaders, members of Congress and labor unions flex the political muscles they’ve spent all campaign season exercising.

Those power brokers, the incoming mayor – and yes, the actual council members – are the ones wannabe speakers have to win over in the coming months. Half a dozen members are either publicly running for the position or are reported to be considering it, including Manhattan’s Carlina Rivera, Keith Powers and Gale Brewer, Queens' Francisco Moya and Adrienne Adams, and Diana Ayala, whose district includes parts of Manhattan and the Bronx.

And then there’s Justin Brannan, the Eric Adams-supporting, Bernie Sanders-endorsing, metal music-loving vegetarian from Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, who has been not so inconspicuously gunning for speaker for years. While most observers say it’s still too early to name a front-runner in the speaker race, some said Brannan is as well positioned as one can be for a contest in which political winds could change swiftly. “I would rather be Justin than any of the other candidates right now,” said one Democratic strategist, who asked not to be named in order to speak openly.

Brannan’s strengths going into the race are clear. His ties to Eric Adams, the Democratic nominee for mayor, makes him a contender for the likely mayor’s all-important support. He’s seen as pro-labor by the unions that are likely to push for their favorite candidate. Some political observers even say Brannan shouldn’t be counted out for the possible support of voting blocs that emerge in Queens and the Bronx, should county leaders rally behind a candidate like they did for Corey Johnson in 2017. And he’s laid the groundwork with incoming council members by endorsing and campaigning widely across the five boroughs this year. It would hardly be a surprise to see momentum building behind Brannan, the candidate who is perhaps most vocally campaigning for speaker.

But in New York City politics, putting in the time and wanting it really badly doesn’t always cut it. Sure, Brannan is one of a few candidates Adams may end up supporting. And even if Adams ends up pulling harder for a different candidate, or stays out of the race entirely, Brannan may still have a path to victory. “Justin is a formidable candidate,” said a Democratic consultant who requested anonymity in order to speak freely about the candidates. “He has very good, strong relationships across the board. And it doesn’t hurt that he and Eric have a good relationship.” But some incoming members don’t want an Adams-aligned speaker. While the council speaker has to work with the mayor, they’re also expected to hold the mayor accountable – something progressive council members are eager to see under an Adams administration. And Brannan is not exactly the candidate of the left.

Right now that’s Carlina Rivera, whose name has been floated by progressive Democrats. Rivera is being supported by Rep. Nydia Velázquez, who endorsed five progressive council candidates that all won their primaries. Reps. Adriano Espaillat and Hakeem Jeffries are also expected to have influence in the race but have yet to stake a position publicly.

Still, say that Brannan, while not a first choice, is deemed “palatable” to progressives – as some argue he will be – he still faces another hurdle. There’s an undeniable interest in electing a woman and/or a Latino speaker to lead the diverse and majority-female council, especially because of the lack of leadership roles held by Latinos in the city. It’s an imperative few Democrats disagree with, but it may not be a sticking point for all new members. “I think it just comes down to, do we support the person who has worked the hardest, or do we support the person just because they are Latino or they live in Manhattan or they live in Queens and they’re a woman,”  likely incoming council member who asked for anonymity because they haven’t made up their mind about who to support in the race. That candidate added that some people may be hesitant to state their support for Brannan given the pressure building to elect a woman and/or a Latino speaker. Notably, the council has never had a Black speaker.

Brannan, like fellow white male candidate Keith Powers, has to be prepared for this hurdle as the campaign for speaker continues. In a recent interview, Brannan vowed that as speaker he would be invested in elevating women of color to committee chairs and other leadership roles. “I think it would be all the more incumbent upon a straight white guy to empower women, especially women of color, in top leadership positions, and rightfully so,” he said.

That incoming council member is supportive of Brannan, but hasn’t ruled out supporting other candidates if push comes to shove. No new council member really wants to piss off the power brokers, after all. “I like Justin and support Justin, but am still waiting to see where the chips are falling,” they said. “At the end of the day, I don’t want to make a wrong political decision just for one person.”

X
This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners. Learn More / Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Accept Cookies
X
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.

Allow All Cookies

Manage Consent Preferences

Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link

If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.

Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.

Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.

If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.

Save Settings
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Cookie List

A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly Necessary Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Functional Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Performance Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Social Media Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Targeting Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.