Public Employee Press

Election 2013
Mayoral Election Nov. 5
District Council 37 backs de Blasio
By ALFREDO ALVARADO

DC 37's DELEGATES voted overwhelmingly Sept. 24 to endorse Domocratic Public Advocate Bill de Blasio for mayor in the Nov. 5 election against Republican Party candidate Joe Lhota. The union's Screening Committee and Executive Board had recommended backing de Blasio.

"We can count on a Mayor de Blasio to end the Bloomberg-era policy of outsourcing, which cost taxpayers billions of dollars in waste and fraud," DC 37 Executive Director Lillian Roberts said.

"We know that as mayor he will understand that a fairly compensated municipal workforce is the foundation for a secure and thriving taxpaying middle class," she added.

Bill de Blasio began his career in city government as an aide to Mayor David Dinkins. Former President Bill Clinton chose him as a regional director at the Dept. of Housing and Urban Development.

His strong Brooklyn roots go back to 1999 when he was elected to the school board for District 15. The following year de Blasio managed the successful U.S. Senate campaign of Hillary Clinton. He ran for a seat in the City Council in 2001, was elected to represent District 39 in Brooklyn. He served for eight years, helping secure more than $100 million dollars in funding for early education programs.

A fierce advocate of affordable housing, he wrote tenants' rights legislation to protect the existing affordable housing stock.

In 2009, he was elected the city's third public advocate. His office issued two reports that documented the rapid increase in fines that had become a burden on small businesses and sued the city to force it to provide data that proved the city was clamping down on small businesses to generate extra revenue.

During his primary campaign, de Blasio championed the plight of the poor and middle class, vowing to fight against rising economic inequality in the city.

"The middle class isn't just shrinking, it's in real danger of disappearing altogether," said de Blasio, who plans to increase taxes for those making more than $500,000. With that revenue, he would like to provide pre-kindergarten for all children.

"Bill's advocacy for the 99 percent of New Yorkers left out for the last 12 years resonated in every borough with a diverse coalition of voters," said Roberts. "We know he'll bring the same passion and creativity he displayed in his impressive primary win to a victorious general election campaign."