Shekar Krishnan

Shekar Krishnan
Member of the New York City Council
from the 25th district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 1, 2022
Preceded byDaniel Dromm
Personal details
Born (1985-06-05) June 5, 1985 (age 39)
Political partyDemocratic
EducationCooper Union (BS)
University of Michigan (JD)
WebsiteOfficial website
Campaign website

Shekar Krishnan (born June 5, 1985)[1] is an American attorney and politician who is a member of the New York City Council for the 25th district, which covers the northwestern Queens neighborhoods of Jackson Heights, Elmhurst, parts of East Elmhurst, and a small piece of Woodside.[2]

Early life

Krishnan was born to immigrant parents from Kerala, India.[3]

He received a Bachelor of Sciences in engineering from The Cooper Union and a Juris Doctor from the University of Michigan Law School.[4]

Career

Krishnan worked as an associate for law firms Weil, Gotshal & Manges and Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler.[5] He was also an attorney at Brooklyn Legal Services Corporation A, directing the organization’s fair housing and tenant advocacy divisions.[4] He is the co-founder of Communities Resist, a legal services organization that represents tenants and neighborhood coalitions in fair housing litigation and anti-displacement advocacy in gentrified neighborhoods.[6][7]

2021 City Council campaign

See also: 2021 New York City Council election

Krishnan announced his candidacy in the 2021 Democratic primary for the 25th District of the New York City Council on November 17, 2020.[6][8] Incumbent Councilmember Daniel Dromm was term-limited and could not run for reelection. He was endorsed by Dromm, U.S. Representative Nydia Velazquez, and State Senators Julia Salazar and John Liu.[9] He centered his campaign on immigrant rights, the taxi medallion crisis, affordable housing, and climate justice.[10]

Krishnan won the ranked-choice primary with 53.4% of all votes cast.[11] He won the general election with 60% of the vote.[12] Along with Shahana Hanif, Krishnan is one of the first South Asians to serve in the New York City Council.[13][10] Days after being elected, Krishnan was arrested along with Hanif and Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani for protesting alongside taxi drivers.[14]

Electoral history

2021 New York City Council District 25 Democratic primary results[15]
Party Candidate Maximum
round 		Maximum
votes 		Share in
maximum
round 		Maximum votes
First round votesTransfer votes
Democratic Shekar Krishnan 7 6,352 53.4%
​​
Democratic Yi Chen 7 5,549 46.6%
​​
Democratic Carolyn Tran 6 3,045 23.6%
​​
Democratic Alfonso Quiroz 5 1,986 14.5%
​​
Democratic Fatima Baryab 4 1,687 11.8%
​​
Democratic Liliana Melo 3 1,041 7.1%
​​
Democratic Manuel Perez 2 513 3.4%
​​
Democratic William Salgado 2 282 1.9%
​​
Write-in 1 35 0.2%
​​

See also

References

  1. ^ @voteshekaar (June 3, 2021). "Come for the cupcakes, stay for the canvass! Come through this Saturday!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  2. ^ "Council Members & Districts". New York City Council. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
  3. ^ Prakash, Priyali (October 29, 2021). "Meet lawyer Shekar Krishnan, who hopes to be among the first South Asians on the NYC council". Scroll.in. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
  4. ^ a b Barsamian, Nicollette (February 22, 2017). "Local Express: Shekar Krishnan". Queens Gazette. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
  5. ^ "New Staff at Brooklyn A: Help us welcome these great new additions to our team!" (PDF). Brooklyn Legal Services Corporation A. 2014. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 17, 2015. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
  6. ^ a b Parry, Bill (November 20, 2020). "Shekar Krishnan announces candidacy for western Queens City Council seat". QNS.com. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
  7. ^ Ponce de Léon, Gabe (July 29, 2021). "Meet the nonprofit candidates likely to join New York's City Council". NYNMedia. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
  8. ^ Dorgan, Michael (December 2, 2020). "PODCAST: We Talk To Shekar Krishnan, Candidate For the 25th Council District". Jackson Heights Post. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
  9. ^ Griffin, Allie (June 8, 2021). "Council Member Daniel Dromm Endorses Shekar Krishnan for District 25 Seat". Jackson Heights Post. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
  10. ^ a b Wang, Claire (November 3, 2021). "NYC Council has 5 new Asian Americans, a record that mirrors city more accurately". NBC News. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
  11. ^ Songalia, Ryan; Murray, Christian (June 22, 2021). "Shekar Krishnan Likely to Win Primary for Jackson Heights/Elmhurst Council Seat". Sunnyside Post. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
  12. ^ Donlevy, Katherine (November 4, 2021). "Say hello to your new city leaders". Queens Chronicle. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
  13. ^ Kumar, Arun (November 3, 2021). "Shekar Krishnan, Shahana Hanif make history winning New York City council races". American Bazaar. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
  14. ^ Venugopal, Verun (November 6, 2021). "Wins For NYC Council Seats & Taxi Debt Relief Deal Showcase Political Might Of South Asians". Gothamist. Retrieved November 8, 2021.
  15. ^ "DEM Council Member 25th Council District". Vote NYC. New York City Board of Elections. July 20, 2021. Retrieved July 23, 2021.