27 NYCHA Tenant Association Presidents Endorse Andrew Cuomo for Mayor
Governor Andrew Cuomo toured Redfern Houses in Far Rockaway, a New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) complex, and met with residents to hear their concerns and discuss his plans to improve public housing in New York City.
Kimberly Comes: ‘Governor Cuomo has been building housing for over 30 years. As HUD Secretary, he fought for public housing across our country, and as governor, he delivered a record investment in our housing needs to ensure our buildings were maintained and repaired. We’ve seen what he can do, and we trust him to fight for us again.’
Photos from Meeting Here
Today, Governor Andrew Cuomo, candidate for Mayor of New York City, toured Redfern Houses, a New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) complex, in Far Rockaway, and met with residents to hear their concerns and discuss his plans to improve public housing in New York City. He was joined by Council Member Selvena Brooks-Powers and NYCHA Tenant Association Presidents Kimberly Comes and Lisa Johnson. Together, they toured the housing complex, spoke with tenants about long-standing issues such as needed repairs, living conditions, and the urgent need for honest, accountable leadership at City Hall. After the meeting, 27 NYCHA Tenant Association presidents from all five boroughs endorsed Governor Cuomo for Mayor, citing his unmatched record on housing. They recognized his leadership as Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary in the Clinton Administration, his 30-year commitment to building affordable housing, and his record-setting investments in NYCHA during his time as Governor.
“Governor Cuomo has been building housing for over 30 years. As HUD Secretary, he fought for public housing across the country, and as governor, he delivered a record investment in addressing our housing needs to ensure our buildings were maintained and repaired. We’ve seen what he can do, and we trust him to fight for us again,” said Kimberly Comes, President of the Redfern Houses Tenant Association. “Our community needs a leader who won’t back down and will put action behind their words– that’s why we proudly endorse Governor Cuomo, because he is the only one who can turn this city around.”
“I’m honored to receive the endorsement of the NYCHA Tenant Association. Your support means the world to me because you represent the heart of New York—working men, women and families who’ve built this city and deserve to live with dignity. Housing is not just a roof over our heads; it’s the foundation for opportunity, stability, and safety,” said Governor Cuomo. “As mayor, I will make it my mission to ensure NYCHA residents get the investment they deserve and that the government works for them– a better, fairer New York starts with fixing public housing—and I’m ready to get it done.”
The following are the Tenant Association Presidents who endorsed Andrew Cuomo for Mayor today:
Bronx
- Emily Bautista, Randall Avenue-Balcom Avenue
- Lehra Brooks, Throggs Neck Houses
- Miriam Sanchez, Monroe Houses
- Jeannette Salcedo, Castle Hill Houses
Brooklyn
- Larry Barton, Vandalia Houses
- Reginald Bowman, Seth Low Houses
- Naomi Colon, Marcy Houses
- Adorn DuBose, Sumner Houses
- Lucas Greer, Williamsburg Houses
- Barry Long, Tompkins Houses
- Alexis Rice – Marcus Garvey Houses
- Eloisa “Panama” Rowe, Borinquen Plaza Houses
- Arthur Warren, Long Island Baptist Houses
- Shirley Williams, Brevoort Houses
- Miriam Robertson – Glenmore Plaza Houses
Manhattan
- William Betancourt, Gaylord White Houses
- Thomas Fredrick, Johnson Houses
- Latisa Gilmore, Drew-Hamilton Houses
- Nathaniel Green, Dyckman Houses
Queens
- Lisa Johnson, Hammel Houses
- Kimberly Comes, Redfern Houses
- Visol Smith, Ocean Bay Apartments
- Tamika Williams-Moore, Pomonok Houses
- Margarieth Massac, Oceanside Housing
Staten Island
- Clifton Creque, Berry Houses
- Rashida Reid, South Beach Houses
- Tina Watson, New Lane Area
As Governor, Andrew Cuomo delivered on an ambitious housing agenda that included affordable housing development, tenant protection, and measures to combat homelessness. Cuomo entered office at a time of increasingly high rents and rising homelessness in New York City. Over the next decade, the Cuomo administration launched major funding initiatives like “House NY” an initiative that injected $1 billion to preserve housing, championed an unprecedented $20 billion housing plan, negotiated Rent Law renewals in 2011 and 2015 that strengthened tenant protections, enacted the Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative in 2016, signed the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019, and partnered with local governments and nonprofits to address homelessness.
These NYCHA tenant association members joins U.S. Rep. Ritchie Torres, Democratic Organization of Queens County and Chairman Rep. Gregory W. Meeks, former New York State Comptroller Carl McCall, former Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., New York State Senator Joseph P. Addabbo Jr., New York State Senator Roxanne Persaud, New York State Senator James Sanders Jr., New York State Senator Toby Ann Stavisky, Brooklyn Democratic Chair and Assembly Member Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, Assembly Member Charles Fall, Assembly Member Eddie Gibbs, Assembly Member Yudelka Tapia, Assembly Member Latrice Walker, Assembly Member Erik Dilan, Assembly Member Jordan Wright, Assembly Member Stacey Pheffer Amato, Assembly Member Sam Berger, Assembly Member Vivian Cook, Assembly Member John Zaccaro, Assembly Member William Colton, Assembly Member David Weprin, Assembly Member Edward Braunstein, Assembly Member Clyde Vanel, Assembly Member Alicia Hyndman, Council Member Kamillah Hanks, Council Member Farah N. Louis, Council Member Susan Zhuang, Council Member Darlene Mealy, Council Member Lynn Schulman, Council Member Kamillah Hanks, Council Member Farah N. Louis, Council Member Susan Zhuang, Council Member Darlene Mealy, Council Member Brooks-Powers, 1199SEIU, Laborers’ International Union of North America (LIUNA),32BJ SEIU, the Hotel and Gaming Trades Council, The Uniformed EMTs, Paramedics & Fire Inspectors Local 2507, the New York City Deputy Sheriffs’ Benevolent Association, New York City Coalition of the International Union of the Operating Engineers, The Utility Workers Union of America Local 1-2, Teamsters Local 237, Teamsters Local 202, Local 3 IBEW, New York City and Vicinity District Council of Carpenters, District Council 9 of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades, 35 District Leaders across the city, former National Director of the Anti-Defamation League, Abe Foxman, the Village Reform Democratic Club, Taminent Regular Democratic Club, American Jewish Congress, over 95 diverse clergy members, and the Italian American Leadership Council in endorsing Governor Cuomo for Mayor of New York City.
