Mark Levine (New York politician)

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Mark Levine
Member of the New York City Council
from the 7th District
Assumed office
January 1, 2014
Preceded byRobert Jackson
Personal details
Born (1969-04-30) April 30, 1969 (age 51)
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse(s)Ivelisse Suarez
Children2
EducationHaverford College (BA)
Harvard University (MA)
WebsiteOfficial website

Mark D. Levine (born April 30, 1969) is an American politician serving as a member of the New York City Council for the 7th district. A Democrat, his district includes the Manhattan neighborhoods of Morningside Heights, West Harlem, Washington Heights, and part of the Upper West Side. He is chair of the City Council's health committee and is co-chair of the Manhattan delegation. Levine is a candidate in the 2021 Manhattan borough president democratic primary.

Early life and education[edit]

Born in Chicago, Illinois, Levine grew up in Columbia, Maryland. His early life was greatly influenced by the social activism of his parents, Marshal and Adele Levine. He majored in physics[1] at Haverford College and the University of Seville, Spain. He received a Masters in Public Policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University in 1995. Levine speaks fluent Spanish and Hebrew.

Career[edit]

Levine taught bilingual math and science at Junior High School 149 in the South Bronx from 1991 to 1993.[2] He was a Teach For America corps member in the program’s early years.[3]

In 1994 he founded Neighborhood Trust Federal Credit Union, a cooperatively-owned financial institution serving low-income families in the Washington Heights section of Northern Manhattan.[4] Levine ran for the New York City Council in 2001,[5] finishing second in a ten-way Democratic field.[6]

In 2007 Levine was elected Democratic District Leader in the 71st Assembly District, Part A, representing parts of Hamilton Heights/West Harlem and Washington Heights. He was an early supporter of Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential primary, and ran on Obama’s delegate slate that year in New York’s 15th Congressional District. In 2009 Levine founded the Barack Obama Democratic Club of Upper Manhattan,[7] a progressive, reform-oriented local political club. In 2010 he ran for New York State Senate in the 31st District, finishing second in a four-way race with 39% of the vote.[8]

New York City Council[edit]

Levine took office in January, 2014.[9] During his first term he served as chair of the City Council's Parks Committee,[10] chair of the Council's Jewish Caucus,[11] and founder and co-chair of the Council's Affordable Housing Preservation Taskforce.[12]

Levine was lead sponsor of legislation passed in 2017[13] which established a right to counsel for low-income tenants facing eviction in housing court, making New York City the first place in the nation to grant such a right.[14][15][16]

Other issues Levine has focused on include: construction of affordable housing,[17] greater equity for parks in low-income neighborhoods,[18][19] improved police-community relations,[20][21] safer streets and expanded mass transit,[22][23] dual-language education,[24] historic preservation,[25] expanded access to medical marijuana,[26] and acceptance of bitcoin for payment of NYC fines and fees.[27]

In addition to chairing the health committee, Levine is currently a member of the education, transportation, economic development, juvenile justice, and hospitals committees. He is a member of the Progressive Caucus and the Jewish Caucus.

In 2017, Levine won the Democratic primary to remain in his council seat with 75% of the vote over closest competitor Thomas Lopez-Pierre with 25%.[28]

Levine was a candidate for City Council Speaker in 2017.[29][30][31]

In his role as chair of the City Council's health committee, Levine gained wide attention during the 2020 coronavirus pandemic.[32]

2021 Manhattan borough president race[edit]

Levine announced his candidacy for Manhattan borough president in January 2020.[33] Levine was endorsed Congressman Adriano Espaillat and Assemblywoman Carmen De La Rosa.[34]

Election history[edit]

2010[edit]

New York State Senate, 31st District, Democratic Party primary election[35]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Adriano Espaillat 13,499 52.4
Democratic Mark Levine 9,696 37.6
Democratic Anna Lewis 1,942 7.5
Democratic Miosotis Munoz 541 2.1
  Other 95 0.4

2013[edit]

City Council, District 7, Democratic Party primary election[36]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Mark Levine 7,454 41.4
Democratic Joyce S. Johnson 3,108 17.3
Democratic Luis Tejada 2,561 14.2
  Other (4) 3,511 19.4
City Council, District 7, general election[37]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Mark Levine 18,105 82.2
Green Christina Gonzalez 1,700 7.7
Working Families Mark Levine 1,168 5.3
  Others/Write-in 1,062 4.8

2017[edit]

City Council, District 7, Democratic Party primary election[38]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Mark Levine 9,286 74.1
Democratic Thomas Lopez-Pierre 3,179 25.4
  Others (Write-in) 72 0.6
City Council, District 7, general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Mark Levine 21,314 95.1
Green Florindo Troncelliti 1,097 4.9

References[edit]

  1. ^ Levine, Mark; Paschalidis, Nicholas; Sarris, Emmanuel (May 1994). "Energetic ion distributions on both sides of the Earth's magnetopause". Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics. 99 (A5): 8687–8703. Bibcode:1994JGR....99.8687P. doi:10.1029/93JA03563.
  2. ^ Appelbaum, Aliza (May 13, 2010). "Community organizer vies for state Senate". Riverdale Press. Retrieved 24 March 2013. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  3. ^ Kopp, Wendy (2003). One Day, All Children... PublicAffairs. p. 155. ISBN 978-1586481797.
  4. ^ Lii, Jane (March 30, 1997). "Building a Nest Egg and a Community". New York Times. Retrieved 23 July 2013. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  5. ^ Seifman, David (July 24, 2001). "Hollywood stars light up small-scale NYC race". New York Post. Retrieved 4 March 2018. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  6. ^ "Searchlight on Campaign 2001: District 7". Gotham Gazette. 2001. Retrieved 4 March 2018. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  7. ^ "Large turnout for new Democratic Club" (PDF). Manhattan Times. March 19, 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 March 2014. Retrieved 24 March 2013. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  8. ^ "Voting Results -- 2010 Primary". Gotham Gazette. September 15, 2010. Retrieved 24 March 2013. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  9. ^ Prend, Channing (January 27, 2014). "At Levine inauguration, thoughts of finding common ground in diverse district". Columbia Spectator. Retrieved 2 February 2014. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  10. ^ Chiwaya, Nigel (January 23, 2014). "Ydanis Rodriguez and Mark Levine Tapped to Lead Council Committees". DNAinfo. Archived from the original on 21 February 2014. Retrieved 2 February 2014. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  11. ^ Donn, Yochonon (March 5, 2014). "New 'Jewish Caucus' Chair Wants to Revitalize Council Group". Hamodia. Retrieved 8 March 2014. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  12. ^ Anuta, Joe (May 23, 2015). "City Council to take more aggressive role in cataloging and preserving affordable housing". Crain's New York Business. Retrieved 8 February 2016. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  13. ^ Tukaj, Amanda (July 21, 2017). "City Council Passes 'Right to Counsel' For Low-Income Tenants in Housing Court". Gotham Gazette. Retrieved 4 March 2018. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  14. ^ Bekeimpis, Victoria (December 11, 2014). "Housing: The Other Civil Rights Movement". Newsweek. Retrieved 28 February 2015. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  15. ^ Navarro, Mireya (December 16, 2014). "Push to Provide Lawyers in New York City Housing Court Gains Momentum". New York Times. Retrieved 28 February 2015. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  16. ^ "The Tale of Two Housing Courts". WNYC: The Brian Lehrer Show. March 28, 2014. Retrieved 28 February 2015. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  17. ^ McQueen, Gregg (February 21, 2018). "Elected officials call for affordable housing on DOT site". Manhattan Times. Retrieved 4 March 2018. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  18. ^ "Parks Equity, Big and Small". WNYC: The Brian Lehrer Show. March 13, 2014. Retrieved 28 February 2015. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  19. ^ Foderaro, Lisa (May 6, 2014). "Focusing on Lesser-Known Open Spaces in New York". New York Times. Retrieved 28 February 2015. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  20. ^ Jorgensen, Jillian (February 12, 2015). "With Push for More Desk Appearance Tickets, Council Bill Would Track Racial Data". New York Observer. Retrieved 28 February 2015. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  21. ^ Levine, Mark (January 9, 2015). "Learning to See Each Other". Gotham Gazette. Retrieved 28 February 2015. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  22. ^ Barkan, Ross (November 26, 2014). "City Council Passes Bill Tripling Traffic Signals Accessible to Blind". New York Observer. Retrieved 28 February 2015. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  23. ^ Miller, Stephen (January 8, 2014). "New CM Mark Levine Will Push NYC DOT for Full 125th Street SBS Route". Streetsblog. Retrieved 28 February 2015. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  24. ^ Shapiro, Eliza (October 29, 2015). "Councilmembers push DOE on foreign-language instruction". Politico. Retrieved 4 March 2018. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  25. ^ Fractenberg, Ben (February 21, 2017). "Morningside Heights Historic District Designated by Landmarks Commission". DNAinfo. Archived from the original on 4 March 2018. Retrieved 4 March 2018. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  26. ^ Green, Johnny (February 4, 2015). "Major Concerns Raised About New York's Medical Marijuana Program". The Weed Blog. Retrieved 28 February 2015. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  27. ^ Martucci, Chris (February 16, 2015). "New York City Councilman Mark Levine Proposes Accepting Bitcoin for Fines and Fees". JET Law. Retrieved 28 February 2015. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  28. ^ "Councilmembers Rosenthal and Levine Soundly Defeat Democratic Challengers". DNAinfo New York. Archived from the original on 13 September 2017. Retrieved 13 September 2017. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  29. ^ "New York City Girds for Political Brawl Over Looming Speaker Vacancy". New York Times. February 15, 2017. Retrieved 29 July 2017. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  30. ^ "City Council speaker race heats up as Melissa Mark-Viverito's heir apparent won't seek reelection". New York Daily News. June 1, 2017. Retrieved 29 July 2017. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  31. ^ "City Council speaker's race shifts, leaving white men ascendant". Politico. June 5, 2017. Retrieved 29 July 2017. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  32. ^ Morgan, Richard (April 29, 2020). "How a politician with no medical background came to be hyped as 'the Anthony Fauci of the New York City Council'". Washington Post. Retrieved 4 May 2020. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  33. ^ Shahrigian, Shant. "NYC Councilman Mark Levine launches Manhattan borough president run". nydailynews.com. Retrieved 2021-03-16.
  34. ^ Hallum, Mark. "Mark Levine gets endorsements on top of financing lead in Manhattan Borough President race". amNewYork. Retrieved 2021-03-16.
  35. ^ "Statement and Return Report for Certification" (PDF). Board of Elections in the City of New York. October 5, 2010.
  36. ^ "Statement and Return Report for Certification" (PDF). Board of Elections in the City of New York. September 30, 2013.
  37. ^ "Statement and Return Report for Certification General Election 2013" (PDF). Board of Elections in the City of New York. December 3, 2013.
  38. ^ "Statement and Return Report for Certification: Primary Election - 09/12/2017" (PDF). Board of Elections in the City of New York. September 26, 2017.

External links[edit]

Political offices
Preceded by
Robert Jackson 		New York City Council, 7th District
2014–present 		Incumbent
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