With the departure of former Speaker Gifford Miller due to term limits, the members of the New York City Council easily found an able replacement for his coveted leadership post when they elected Manhattan Council Member Christine Quinn. As Speaker, Quinn, 39, became the second most powerful official in City Hall and the first woman and openly gay leader of the New York City Council.

“Christine Quinn is an excellent choice as Speaker, and we are extremely proud of her,” said Local 237 President Carl Haynes. “Christine has been a friend and supporter of Local 237 and working men and women during her eight years in the Council. She is vocal on many issues and unafraid to stand up for what she believes. As the Council Member who represents the Chelsea area, Christine has been a frequent visitor to union headquarters, and actively participates in our events and programs. We look forward to working with her and welcoming her back at 14th Street as Speaker.”

Following her election on Jan. 4, at the opening of the Council’s new legislative session, Quinn thanked her colleagues and praised her “great friend” and predecessor Gifford Miller for leading the Council “with strength, courage and thoughtfulness…He leaves a city stronger than he found it.”


A More Responsive Government

Quinn, who easily won the Council leadership position after her main opponent for the post, Bill de Blasio, gave up the challenge and supported her, added that she will be “guided by the principles that will make our government even more responsive to people’s needs and more effective for all New Yorkers.”

“I am committed to being a five-borough Speaker,” Quinn said. “Whether you speak Spanish in the South Bronx, Chinese in Flushing, Yiddish in Borough Park, Creole in Flatbush, Bassa in Park Hill or English in Chelsea, we work for you….our job is to make your life better.”

Quinn pledged to promote “an aggressive legislative agenda” and promised “to be as good a Speaker as I am a listener. So my message to my colleagues, to our constituents and to all New Yorkers is simple: My door is always open…the more people we hear from, the more good ideas we get, the more effective we will be as a legislature.”

The newly elected Speaker is considered a strong counterbalance to Mayor Michael Bloomberg. She is well-known as an outspoken advocate for issues she supports. Before being elected to the New York City Council, Quinn served for five years as Chief of Staff to NYC Council Member Thomas K. Duane. She later served as Executive Director of the New York City Gay and Lesbian Anti-Violence Project.

The Council’s January 4th charter meeting was also the first meeting of newly elected Council Members Inez E. Dickens, representing Manhattan’s District 9; Daniel Garodnick, representing Manhattan’s District 4; Jessica Lappin, representing Manhattan’s District 5; Darlene Mealy, representing Brooklyn’s District 41; Rosie Mendez, representing Manhattan’s District 2; James Vacca, representing Bronx’s District 13; Melissa Mark Viverito, representing Manhattan’s District 8, and Thomas White Jr., representing Queens District 28.