Pro-israel, Jewish Frontrunner for NYC Council Speaker Wins New Endorsements

(JNS) – The frontrunner in the race to be speaker of the New York City Council secured new union endorsements on Monday in the first sign of potential hedging on mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani.

Julie Menin, a Democrat representing Manhattan’s Upper East Side, is a Jewish, pro-Israel moderate, who could counterbalance the self-described democratic socialist and staunch Israel critic in city government.

Menin declared on Wednesday that she had a supermajority of support on the 51-seat council ahead of the Jan. 7 vote. On Monday, she added endorsements from the Transport Workers Union and New York City Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO.

“Throughout her time in public service, Julie Menin has shown a clear understanding of the challenges facing working people in this city,” Central Labor Council president Brendan Griffith wrote.

The union “looks forward to working with her and the council to advance policies that make the city more affordable, improve the lives of the people who keep New York running, and strengthen unions and empower the workers they represent,” he said.

Both unions endorsed Mamdani in the mayoral election. Menin’s main rival—progressive Democrat Crystal Hudson, who represents Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, on the council—has conceded the race.

Menin is the daughter and granddaughter of Holocaust survivors, and if elected, she would be the first Jewish speaker of the City Council. (The council has previously had Jewish presiding officers under different titles.)

She has previously backed efforts to fund Holocaust education in the city, described a local Department of Education newsletter accusing Israel of committing “genocide” in Gaza as “unconscionable” and “hate speech” and traveled to Israel in 2024 as part of a solidarity mission led by the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York.

Those pro-Israel positions stand in contrast to the mayor-elect, who has repeatedly accused Israel of committing “genocide” and refuses to march in New York City’s Israel Day parade, an event that Menin attends annually.

In an interview with Politico on Monday, Menin declined to say that she would be a “check” on Mamdani, focusing instead on where their policy goals overlap.

“There is widespread agreement within the council that we want to partner on a shared affordability agenda that includes building more affordable housing and enacting universal child care,” Menin told Politico. “I think we are very aligned on the shared affordability agenda, and I think there’s additional opportunities that the council has to push the affordability agenda.”

Local media reported that Menin expects to announce additional council endorsements on Wednesday.