Yusef Salaam, shown after winning the Democratic primary in June, was elected to the 9th City Council District seat in Harlem on Nov. 7, 2023.
File photo/Paul Frangipane
Nine incumbent Manhattan City Council members emerged victorious Tuesday night from a surprise-free general election that also saw Yusef Salaam, a member of the “Exonerated Five,” clinch a spot in the city’s legislature.
Salaam defeated three other challengers — including two long-time veteran lawmakers in Assembly Members Inez Dickens and Al Taylor — in June’s Democratic primary for the 9th District seat based in Harlem. He won the seat unopposed Tuesday, and will succeed the outgoing Kristen Richardson Jordan come January.
More than 30 years ago, Salaam and four others were wrongfully charged and convicted in the infamous rape of a jogger in Central Park. He served seven years in prison before the conviction was ultimately overturned, and the “Central Park Five” were renamed the “Exonerated Five.”
“In my darkest moments, when seemingly the world was against the so-called Central Park Five, I never gave up hope — and tonight, this victory represents hope for our Harlem community,” Salaam said in a Nov. 7 statement. “To my four brothers who went through that vilification and then exoneration, this win is for those scared kids decades ago who were railroaded through the criminal injustice system that wanted us dead. We survived because we knew we were right, and eventually, the world did, too.”
Salaam pledged to bring about a “new Harlem Renaissance … filled with good jobs, opportunities, better schools, more affordable housing, safe communities, and vibrant, joyful streets.”
“The hard work begins now,” he added. “This community was there for more when nobody else was, and now it is the honor of a lifetime to give back. We have a lot of work to do, and it won’t be easy, but I am ready to put everything into it.”
Other results
As for the other…
Read the full article here
Leave a Reply