In just one week, voters will decide who will be the Democratic candidate racing to unseat New York City Mayor Eric Adams.
Michael Blake, from the Bronx, wants your vote. The former state assemblyman says he is ready to fight for New Yorkers and change the narrative that where you come from does not define what you can become.
“If you are looking for a new generation of leadership, my name is Michael Blake and I want to be your mayor,” said Blake.
Blake, the son of immigrant parents from Jamaica, was born in the Bronx and a graduate of DeWitt Clinton High School.
“My mom overcame homelessness in Jamaica, we sold dinner to pay rent in the Bronx. We are seeing this all across the board. People are wondering ‘how I keep my home,’ one out of eight public school students are homeless. We have a crisis at hand,” said Blake.
He launched his campaign on affordability, with a focus on eliminating credit scores for housing applications and increasing income limits, creating a local median income, freezing rent for at least one year and adding 1,000 mental health professionals into the subways and streets.
“You should have heat, hot water, working elevators, dignity in your own home. When we think about what’s at stake here, we should use technology for good, the same way you can use technology to order a meal, order a car, order a flight, you should be able to track repairs in your home, so someone cannot close out a ticket without addressing those repairs,” said Blake. “A vacant apartment tax for those who are not living in NYC as a primary residence, claiming back unclaimed fees and fines, making sure we are not having $1.4 billion of NYPD in excessive overtime, taxing MSG.”
Before being elected to his former seat in the 79th District, Blake worked in the Obama administration as the associate director of public engagement and as the deputy associate director of the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs. Blake says if elected, New York will remain a sanctuary city, with safe havens for immigrant families.
“I am the person in this race who can say I defeated Donald Trump when I was in leadership. I have White House experience with President Obama, trained by him, state House experience as an assembly member,” said Blake, “You do not have to go back to the only name you think you know of, Andrew Cuomo, you can have change in new leadership, and new judgement in Michael Blake.”
The primary election is on June 24.
