Brad Lander Endorses John Choe for City Council in District 20

Council Member Brad Lander endorsed John Choe for City Council in District 20 in the upcoming Democratic Party Primary Election on June 22, 2021. The endorsement took place during a tour of the business community in downtown Flushing, Queens. Council Member Lander and John Choe, executive director of the Greater Flushing Chamber of Commerce, discussed the challenges facing small business owners and potential solutions to overcome them. Businesses visited included Kenvic Training, Fang’s Gourmet Tea, Blink Marketing, and Joe’s Steam Rice Roll.

Council Member Brad Lander stated: “I'm proud to support John Choe's people-powered campaign to represent Flushing. John has long been a determined advocate for community members, fighting against displacement, for language access and to support small businesses. He is exactly the kind of leader we need now in the City Council to work towards a recovery that addresses the needs of all New Yorkers.”

Council Member Lander is the co-founder of the City Council’s Progressive Caucus, helped bring participatory budgeting to New York City and has a track record of partnering with community advocates to win data-driven, innovative campaigns to protect workers, expand tenants rights, hold the NYPD accountable, and win safer streets. Lander is now the leading contender to become the next NYC Comptroller, the chief financial officer of the City of New York.

“I’m proud to endorse Brad Lander for New York City Comptroller and honored to receive his endorsement in my campaign to represent District 20 in the City Council,” said John Choe. “Brad and I have fought together for affordable housing and land use reform for many years--from the days when he was a housing advocate and I was Chief of Staff to Councilmember John Liu.”

“Last year, Brad Lander had the guts and principle to vote against the Special Flushing Waterfront Redevelopment, a massive luxury development contributing to the sky-high rents driving working families and small businesses out of our community -- a project that was pushed through without an environmental impact study by those who take developer money and say anything developers do is good. I’m confident that Brad Lander will bring integrity to the Comptroller’s Office, and oppose the pay-to-play culture that allows banks and developers to control New York City economic development. I look forward to working with him on this and other important issues when I’m in the Council.”

John Choe is the executive director of the Greater Flushing Chamber of Commerce and former Chief of Staff to John Liu. Choe’s campaign to become the next Council Member of District 20 has already secured the support and endorsement of Senators John Liu and Robert Jackson; Assembly Member Ron Kim; Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer; State Committeeman Donald Henton; District Leader Émilia Decaudin; Queens Borough Historian Jack Eichenbaum; the Rev. Franklin Anderson of Macedonia AME Church; Maureen Regan, President of the Queensboro Hill Flushing Civic Association; Youngsoo Choi of the Korean American Alliance of Cancel Rent and Tax Relief; Sheldon Minnus of Victory United; as well as the union members and community activists of the Working Families Party (WFP), 1199 SEIU Healthcare Workers, Make the Road New York, SEIU Committee of Interns and Residents; Community Voices Heard, Council of School Supervisors and Administrators; Queens United Independent Progressives (QUIP), Voters for Animal Rights; and, the New York Progressive Action Network (NYPAN).