In the crowded field of candidates running to replace Councilman Ben Kallos, Tricia Shimamura has picked up an endorsement from former boss and Washington big-whig, Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney.
But now she is bringing in the support of former Manhattan Borough President Ruth Messinger as the race inches closer to the June 22 Democratic primaries.
“Ruth Messinger truly embodies what it means to be a public servant,” Shimamura said. “Throughout her decades in public service, she has blazed a trail for women leaders, fought for working New Yorkers, and led the way on rent control measures for small businesses, public education, affordable housing, and so much more. She is a role model for what elected officials can achieve, and I will work tirelessly to follow in her footsteps as a City Councilmember.”
A Democratic nominee for mayor in 1997 who lost to incumbent mayor Rudy Giuliani, Messinger was borough president between 1990 and succeeded by C. Virginia Fields the year she came short of City Hall. Until 2016, she served as president of American Jewish World Service.
“As a social worker and a young mom, Tricia is exactly the type of person we should be electing,” Messinger said. “Both her personal and professional experience give her the political instincts and breadth of knowledge needed to enter the City Council and do right by her constituents from day one. I am proud to be supporting her campaign and look forward to working with her to achieve a better New York City.”
A long way from alone in seeking the majority vote in the City Council District 5 – covering the Upper Ease Side and East Harlem – Shimamura will go up against opponents Mark Foley, Billy Freeland, Josh Kravitz, Rebecca Lamorte, Julie Menin, Kim Moscaritolo, Christopher Sosa and Marco Tamayo.
