BY THE VILLAGE SUN | The speculation on whether Harvey Epstein plans to run for City Council could end soon.
According to a flier that’s circulating, Epstein will be joined by former Councilmembers Margarita Lopez and Rosie Mendez at a “special announcement” on the morning of Sat., May 18, on Avenue C.
Lopez was followed by Mendez in previously representing Council District 2, which includes the East Village and extends up to Murray Hill. Mendez was, in turn, followed by Carlina Rivera, the current councilmember, who will be term-limited out of office at the end of 2025. All three women ran with the backing of the East Village’s dominant political organization, Coalition for a District Alternative (CoDA). Between the three of them, the district has had about 25 years of Loisaida Latina leadership in the City Council.
Due to recent redistricting, CD 2 now also extends west to Sixth Avenue in Greenwich Village.
Obviously, an endorsement by Lopez and Mendez would be a major boost for an Epstein City Council campaign.
A few candidates have already thrown their hat into the ring for the District 2 seat, including Andrea Gordillo, the chairperson of Community Board 3, and Sarah Batchu, a former de Blasio staffer who is vice chairperson of C.B. 3.
As of last word, Epstein was still running for reelection to the Assembly. He faces no opposition in next month’s Democratic primary election and so is shoo-in to hold the seat in the deeply blue district.
In March, though, he told The Village Sun he was not ruling out a bid for City Council and was “exploring options.”
“I am running for reelection this year but open to looking at other positions in the future, including the City Council,” he said.
One local politico, after viewing the flier for Epstein’s “special announcement,” commented anonymously, “Looking at this, I think he’s running for City Council.”
Epstein did not immediately respond to a request for comment. However, according to another local political source, the event is a campaign announcement.
If The Village Sun is going to cover this please ask Margarita Lopez and the others about this new report https://abc7ny.com/post/jacob-riis-houses-nycha-mishandled-water-testing-at-east-village-complex-that-falsely-detected-arsenic-city-finds/14827828/
In the past, I believe, area politicians made donations to ABC NO RIO to build another building? What happened to the money and does the ABC NO RIO director actually still plan to build it?
The neighborhood is insane and these politicians have collected paychecks from taxpayers for too many years… voting is a complete waste of time ….By the way this guy has lived next to MORUS for years and will they address the mental health treatment failures that put EV lives in danger including this man ? Check out the photo at this link of him next to MORUS. https://nypost.com/2024/05/12/us-news/nyc-violent-vagrant-ice-pick-nick-with-37-busts-who-terrorized-east-village-for-years-finally-jailed/
If he’s runnning for Council, why should anyone vote for him for Assembly this year?