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Public Advocate Williams Defends Running For Reelection While Also Considering Higher Office
By
Brigid Bergin
Published Oct 20, 2021
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Spectrum NY1
By
Brigid Bergin
Published Oct 20, 2021
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New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams defended his decision to run for reelection this year while at the same time openly considering a gubernatorial bid — next year. He made the comments during an hour-long debate on Spectrum NY1 on Tuesday evening between the two leading candidates for the citywide office that’s next in line of succession to the mayoralty.
The incumbent Democrat announced last month that he was forming an exploratory committee to allow him to fundraise for the position and enlisting a team of advisors. When pressed on why people should re-elect him, Williams said he was trying to be honest with voters.
READ MORE: Public Advocate Jumaane Williams Eyes Run For Governor
“The calendar is something that we can’t do anything about and so I’m caught between having to make decisions at the same time,” said Williams. “I think it would be dereliction of duty not to say I’m even going to explore a position that actually has more tools than I have now to do the things I am actually advocating for,” he added.
Williams' leading opponent is the Republican candidate Dr. Devi Nampiaparampil, a physician specializing in pain management who currently runs a private practice and provides on-air medical commentary on several broadcast networks. She previously held positions with the Department of Veteran Affairs, according to her campaign website.
Unlike the primary contest in June, where candidates vying for their party’s nomination often share similar political views, Williams and Dr. Nampiaparampil offered some stark contrasts, particularly related to their positions on the city’s use of vaccine mandates.
Williams, who delayed his employees' return to office even after Mayor de Blasio ordered city employees to suspend remote work, said he supports vaccine mandates for city workers with certain religious exemptions. By contrast, Dr. Nampiaparampil said that while she was vaccinated, she opposed any mandates that would force others to be vaccinated, framing it as a civil liberties violation, and vowed to end them if she were elected.
“There are a lot of people who believe that they should have control over their own bodies and I believe that, too,” said Dr. Nampiaparampil.
READ MORE: What Does A Public Advocate Do?
Williams pushed back, arguing that there are already vaccine mandates in place for other diseases, while also noting that there are a host of laws in place that put limits on what individuals are allowed to do when their actions impact those around them.
“You also are not allowed to have a civil liberty to run through a red light and kill someone, so we have to balance that out,” he said.
Both candidates took aim at the de Blasio administration’s handling of the billion dollar Thrive mental health initiative and the ongoing crisis at the Rikers Island jail complex, pointing fingers at City Hall for chronic mismanagement on both fronts.
Despite their occasional agreement during the debate, as the Republican challenger Dr. Nampiaparampil sought to sock Williams, as a Democrat, with any perceived policy failures of the de Blasio administration, even though Williams has only held the office for two years after winning a special election in 2019.
READ MORE: Here's Your Guide To NYC's 2021 Election
This was the only televised debate between the two candidates and marked the first return to in-person debates for Spectrum NY1, after dozens of remote debates throughout the pandemic. Both candidates were required to show proof of vaccination to attend.
Early voting begins Saturday and Election Day is November 2, 2021.
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public advocate
Politics
election 2021
Brigid Bergin
Brigid Bergin is an award-winning senior reporter on the People and Power desk. She is fiercely committed to telling stories that help people engage and support democracy. In 2022, she hosted a live, ten-week call-in politics show ahead of the midterm elections called The People's Guide to Power. Brigid's reporting in 2017 included some of the first coverage of a political newcomer now known as AOC. In 2016, she broke the news of a voter purge in Brooklyn just days before New York’s presidential primary, triggering city, state and federal investigations. Brigid also guest hosts The Brian Lehrer Show and All Of It. She graduated from the University at Albany and the CUNY Newmark School of Journalism. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or Signal 917-723-4719.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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