Zellnor Myrie Explained

Zellnor Myrie
State Senate:New York State
District:20th
Term Start:January 1, 2019
Predecessor:Jesse Hamilton
Birth Date:3 November 1986
Birth Place:New York City, New York, U.S.
Party:Democratic
Education:Fordham University (BA, MA)
Cornell University (JD)
Signature:Zellnor Myrie Signature.png

Zellnor Myrie (born November 3, 1986) is an American politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he has served in the New York State Senate since 2019, representing the 20th state senate district, which includes parts of Brooklyn. In 2024, Myrie formed an exploratory committee to run for Mayor of New York City in the 2025 mayoral election.[1]

Early life and education

Myrie was born in Brooklyn, New York City to Costa Rican-born immigrant parents and raised in the Prospect Lefferts Gardens neighborhood.[2] He graduated from Brooklyn Technical High School and attended Fordham University, earning his undergraduate and Master's degrees in urban studies.[3] [4] After graduate school, he earned his Juris Doctor from Cornell Law School where he served as student government president, prison law instructor, and pro bono scholar.[5] [6]

Early career

Before law school, Myrie worked for the New York City Council as a legislative director where he helped draft the Tenant Bill of Rights. After law school, he joined Davis Polk & Wardwell. As an associate at the firm, Myrie worked more than 600 pro bono hours in one year.[7] His pro bono work included cases brought by victims of police brutality, special education students seeking services from the Department of Education, domestic violence victims, and asylum seekers.[8]

Political career

In the 2018 elections, Myrie ran for New York State Senate in the 20th district. He challenged Jesse Hamilton, a former member of the Independent Democratic Conference, in the Democratic Party primary election.[9] Myrie defeated Hamilton in the September primary, earning 54% of the vote.[10] [11] Hamilton remained on the ballot in the November general election under the Independence and Women's Equality ballot lines, where Myrie defeated him again, earning over 92% of the vote.[12]

Myrie chairs the Elections Committee in the state senate.[13] He is also a member of the Senate's consumer protection committee.[14] Myrie supported the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019.[15] [16] He also sponsored legislation to ban most evictions during New York's COVID-19 state of emergency.[17] [18]

On May 30, 2020, Myrie was pepper-sprayed and handcuffed while taking part in protests following the murder of George Floyd.[19] [20] On October 29, 2021, six New York City firefighters were suspended for threatening the staff of Myrie in regards to his support of firing certain city employees who were unwilling to be vaccinated against COVID-19.[21]

Myrie supports financial institutions having the right to deny lending capital to ammunition and gun industries.[22] Myrie has advocated for requiring food regulators to target corporations that advertise unhealthy foods.[23] In 2021, Myrie was one of two members of the New York State Senate to vote against a bill designating baseball as the official state sport of New York.[24]

In 2021, Myrie authored the Community Violence Intervention Act, which declared gun violence a public health crisis and which provides millions of dollars to local hospital- and community-based violence intervention programs.[25] [26] Myrie also authored a first-in-the-nation law that classifies illegal gun sales as a nuisance, which could open gun manufacturers to liability.[27] [28]

Mayoral exploratory committee

See main article: article and 2025 New York City mayoral election. On May 9, 2024, Myrie announced that he was forming an exploratory committee to prepare for a potential campaign for Mayor of New York City in the 2025 mayoral election.

Notes and References

  1. News: Mays . Jeffery C. . Fitzsimmons . Emma G. . 2024-05-08 . Second Democrat Emerges to Challenge Mayor Adams’s Path to Re-election . 2024-05-14 . The New York Times . en-US . 0362-4331.
  2. Web site: Young lawyer wants Sen. Jesse Hamilton's job. King. Nelson A.. Caribbean Life. en. December 26, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181209124331/https://www.caribbeanlifenews.com/stories/2018/4/2018-03-30-nk-zellnor-myrie-cl.html. December 9, 2018. live.
  3. Web site: Brooklyn Tech Alumni. www.facebook.com. en. December 26, 2018.
  4. Web site: Success Stories. N. Miah Md. www.fordham.edu. en. December 26, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181226084511/https://www.fordham.edu/info/22664/about_urban_studies/4389/success_stories/1. December 26, 2018. live.
  5. Web site: Zellnor Myrie '16 Success Story. Technologies. Instructional and Web Services, Cornell Information. www.lawschool.cornell.edu. en. December 26, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181226084420/https://www.lawschool.cornell.edu/Success-Story.cfm?storyID=89D8A9A3-957B-07A2-5AFF666B3523CB1F. December 26, 2018. live.
  6. Web site: Recent Grad Zellnor Myrie '16 Wins New York State Senate Race. Technologies. Instructional and Web Services, Cornell Information. www.lawschool.cornell.edu. en. December 26, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181226133714/https://www.lawschool.cornell.edu/spotlights/Recent-Grad-Zellnor-Myrie-16-Wins-New-York-State-Senate-Race.cfm. December 26, 2018. live.
  7. News: Board . The Editorial . 2018-08-28 . Opinion The New York Times Endorses Alessandra Biaggi, Jessica Ramos and Zellnor Myrie for State Senate in Thursday’s Primary . en-US . The New York Times . 2024-01-04 . 0362-4331.
  8. Web site: Amsterdam News Primary Endorsements, Part 2. amsterdamnews.com. August 30, 2018. December 26, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181226090038/http://amsterdamnews.com/news/2018/aug/30/amsterdam-news-primary-endorsements-part-2/. December 26, 2018. live.
  9. Web site: Primary Election Results - BKLYNER. bklyner.com. December 26, 2018. September 14, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180915125824/https://bklyner.com/primary-election-results/. September 15, 2018. live.
  10. Web site: Home | NYC Board of Elections. vote.nyc.ny.us. December 26, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181226084405/http://vote.nyc.ny.us/downloads/pdf/election_results/2018/20180913Primary%20Election/01302100020Kings%20Democratic%20State%20Senator%2020th%20Senatorial%20District%20Recap.pdf. December 26, 2018. live.
  11. Web site: Zellnor Myrie's fight is not over. d_evers. September 27, 2018. November 9, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181107145117/https://www.cityandstateny.com/articles/personality/interviews-profiles/zellnor-myrie-interview.html. November 7, 2018. live.
  12. Web site: Home | NYC Board of Elections. vote.nyc.ny.us. December 26, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181226084418/http://vote.nyc.ny.us/downloads/pdf/election_results/2018/20181106General%20Election/00302100020Kings%20State%20Senator%2020th%20Senatorial%20District%20Recap.pdf. December 26, 2018. live.
  13. Web site: Brooklyn Dems Win, Felder Does Not - BKLYNER. bklyner.com. December 26, 2018. December 11, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181226133738/https://bklyner.com/brooklyn-dems-win-felder-does-not/. December 26, 2018. live.
  14. Web site: State lawmaker slams Optimum over hidden fee, demands refund for customers. nydailynews.com. December 23, 2019.
  15. News: Across the Country, Progressives Are Pushing for Universal Rent Control — and New York Is Next. Lennard. Natasha. May 14, 2019. The Intercept. July 20, 2019. The proposals are being sponsored by progressive freshman Democrats like state Sens. Julia Salazar and Zellnor Myrie, and born of tenants’ rights organizing around the state by the Upstate/Downstate Housing Alliance.. https://web.archive.org/web/20190720045559/https://theintercept.com/2019/05/14/universal-rent-control-bill-new-york-salazar/. July 20, 2019. live.
  16. News: New York enacts pro-tenant rent law overhaul as landlords plan legal challenge. Slattery. Denis. June 14, 2019. New York Daily News. https://web.archive.org/web/20190720045944/https://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/ny-rent-regulations-tenants-landlords-overhaul-20190614-ezcbph2fvbf2bn4vmfg5aetfay-story.html. July 20, 2019. live. Sen. Zellnor Myrie (D-Brooklyn), a freshman lawmaker and vocal supporter of strengthening tenant protections, wiped tears from his eyes before addressing a crowd of advocates..
  17. News: Rubinstein . Dana . 2020-12-28 . New York Bans Most Evictions as Tenants Struggle to Pay Rent . en-US . The New York Times . 2022-06-04 . 0362-4331.
  18. Web site: NY Senator Wants to Stop Evictions for a Year After Covid-19 - the Real Deal . July 7, 2020 .
  19. News: State senator says he was pepper sprayed, handcuffed at Barclays protest. May 31, 2020. June 1, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200601201354/http://bronx.news12.com/story/42192118/state-senator-says-he-was-pepper-sprayed-handcuffed-at-barclays-protest. June 1, 2020. live.
  20. News: Gay. Mara. Gale. Jordan. 2020-05-31. Opinion The Nation's Largest Police Force Is Treating Us as an Enemy. en-US. The New York Times. 2020-06-01. 0362-4331. https://web.archive.org/web/20200601213528/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/31/opinion/george-floyd-new-york-protests.html. June 1, 2020. live.
  21. Web site: NYC Firefighters Suspended for Threatening Lawmaker's Staff over Vax Mandate. The Daily Beast. October 30, 2021.
  22. Web site: Rule That Could Force Banks to Fund Gun Industry Decried by BK Senator. January 4, 2021.
  23. Web site: Verde . Ben . 2021-10-29 . State Sen. Zellnor Myrie, a carrot, targets junk food advertising • Brooklyn Paper . 2022-03-06 . www.brooklynpaper.com . en-US.
  24. Web site: Harding . Robert . July 14, 2021 . NY Senate passes Oberacker's bill to designate baseball as official state sport . 2022-03-06 . Auburn Citizen . en.
  25. Web site: 2022-04-28 . Federal, state funding heads to Brooklyn anti-gun violence programs . 2022-06-04 . Brooklyn Eagle . en-US.
  26. Web site: BK Sen. Zellnor Myrie Named Lawmaker of the Year by Gun Safety Orgs . Bkreader.com . 2021-08-16 . 2022-06-09.
  27. Web site: State Sen. Zellnor Myrie takes on the rise in gun violence - City & State New York . Cityandstateny.com . 2020-08-17 . 2022-06-09.
  28. News: Ferré-Sadurní . Luis . 2021-06-09 . It's Hard to Sue Gun Makers. New York Is Set to Change That. . en-US . The New York Times . 2022-06-04 . 0362-4331.

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