The New York City Council on Wednesday elected Julie Menin as Speaker, placing her at the helm of the legislative body at a moment defined by mounting affordability pressures, a deepening housing shortage and other major policy challenges facing the city.
As Speaker, Menin is expected to prioritize expanding affordable housing, lowering rising health care costs, reducing fines and bureaucratic hurdles for small businesses and strengthening oversight to eliminate waste, fraud and abuse in city government.
Her election also marks a historic milestone: Menin is the first Jewish Speaker and will preside over a council that continues to have a majority of women members.
“I am deeply honored and humbled that my City Council colleagues have elected me as Speaker,” Menin said in a statement. “New York has a long history of turning moments of challenge into moments of opportunity. Together, we will forge a new City Council that takes a more forceful and proactive approach to New York’s shared goals. That includes enacting universal child care, lowering skyrocketing health care costs, building more affordable housing and slashing fines and bureaucratic red tape for small businesses.”
She is the daughter and granddaughter of Holocaust survivors and has built a career spanning public service, law and small business ownership. Before becoming Speaker, she served as Chair of the Committee on Consumer and Worker Protection and Co-Chair of the Council’s Women’s Caucus.
Menin was nominated for the speakership by seven Council Members representing all five boroughs: Kevin C. Riley of the Bronx, Shaun Abreu of Manhattan, Farah N. Louis of Brooklyn, Linda Lee of Queens, Kamillah Hanks of Staten Island, Shekar Krishnan of Queens and Eric Dinowitz of the Bronx. Supporters cited her deep understanding of city operations, her collaborative leadership style, and her record of delivering tangible results for New Yorkers, particularly in the areas of consumer protection, affordability and equity.
Menin has represented Council District 5, which includes parts of the Upper East Side and all of Roosevelt Island, since Jan. 2022. During her tenure, she has sponsored and passed legislation aimed at advancing universal child care, establishing an Office of Healthcare Accountability to address excessive pricing, streamlining city licensing through a one-stop online portal for small businesses and codifying the right to reproductive health care services.
