Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez announced her endorsement of Maya Wiley for New York City mayor, and a slate of 60 progressive City Council candidates hailing from across the five boroughs, at a rally in City Hall Park on June 5.
One of the most sought-after endorsements among candidates on the progressive left, AOC explained that Wiley, a civil right attorney and former adviser to Mayor Bill de Blasio, was the progressive candidate to fight the special interests who have been pouring in an enormous amount of dark money and to make New York City a place for the people by the people.
“Maya Wiley is the one. She will be a progressive in Gracie Mansion. And the movements that we have and the city council candidate that we just announced will hold her and support her in doing that. We make the decisions that we need to make to need to make in order to build a city that works for everybody. Maya Wiley is our number one,” AOC declared.
Wiley said she was humbled and proud to receive Ocasio-Cortez’s endorsement and promised that she would make sure to work for every single New Yorker and that New York was at a crossroads.
“We have the courage to bring every single New Yorker with us,” Wiley said. “Because we’re gonna make sure everyone can afford the rent. We are gonna make sure everyone safe in their streets from police violence and from crime. And we’re gonna do it, recognizing that we are truly safe. When all our people are well, this is a good place to live.”
Earlier, Public Advocate Jumaane Williams and AOC spoke to the 60 progressive city council candidates, with City Hall serving as a backdrop.
The crowd greeted Williams, who is up for reelection and received AOC’s endorsement, chanting “Time to Shine the Light” and “Defund NYPD.”
Williams said he was glad to see that all the candidates had pledged to make the city more progressive. However, he admitted that “sometimes I’m confused, and I don’t really know what that word means anymore because the governor says he’s progressive. But what I do know is that we want everybody to be on the trades and freedom, equity and justice, there’s room for everyone.”
AOC greeted the crowd saying that it was an exciting day since the city election was down to the wire.
She explained that along with policy experts, grassroots leaders, and advocates, they created the “Courage to Change” PAC and put together a list of standards and commitments candidates had to meet, ranging from schooling to housing to public safety to climate.
“What we found were 60 incredible city council candidates who made that pledge on all 27 points,” AOC explained. “These are our “Courage to Change” candidates. Sixty candidates across New York City, and what we’re doing is that we are advancing and making sure that we are coming together as a movement.”
She encouraged New York City voters to check out the “Courage to Change” voting guide.
“I assure you that it is highly likely that a “Courage to Change” candidate is in your neighborhood, running to represent your community,” the congresswoman promised.
