New NYC law will prevent Hiram Monserrate from running for Queens council seat
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A new city law will prevent Hiram Monserrate from running for city council. AP Photo
By David Brand
Mayor Bill de Blasio on Thursday signed legislation that will block ex-lawmakers from running for municipal office if they have been convicted of public corruption, a measure targeting one former Queens councilmember in particular.
The new law will prevent Hiram Monserrate from challenging incumbent Councilmember Francisco Moya in District 21.
Monserrate was sentenced to two years in federal prison in 2012 after he funneled City Council money to a nonprofit and used the cash to fund his successful state senate campaign. He was ordered to pay nearly $80,000 in restitution and completed the payments during his failed bid for the Assembly in June 2020.
De Blasio said the city “must ensure public servants keep our trust.”
A version of the bill was first introduced by Moya and then-Bronx Councilmember Ritchie Torres in 2018. Brooklyn Councilmember Justin Brannan introduced the version that became law following a 44-1 vote by the council earlier this month.
"Serving the public in elected office is a privilege, not a right, and it must be treated as such,” Brannan said in a statement. “You don't get a second chance to betray New Yorkers.”
Despite his corruption conviction, as well as a conviction for a domestic violence-related misdemeanor, Monserrate maintains a loyal following in parts of Corona and East Elmhurst. He was elected Democratic district leader in 2018 and again in 2020, and he runs an active Democratic club.
He lost to Moya in his bid to reclaim his old council seat in 2017 and also lost to Assemblymember Jeff Aubry in the 2020 state primary.
Monserrate did not respond to phone calls seeking comment for this story.
In an interview with the Eagle earlier this month, Monserrate slammed the measure and said he was considering a lawsuit.
”Instead of focusing on COVID-19 and an economy in shambles, the NYC Council chose to use its power to strip me of a constitutional right to run,” Monserrate said.
“There are inalienable rights that everyone has. And if we are truly for criminal justice reform then we have to be for criminal justice reform for everyone,” he added. “I am considering my legal options as we speak.”
The new law will apply to several former Queens lawmakers convicted of public corruption, but one ex-councilmember has escaped the impact of the measure
Former Southeast Queens Councilmember Ruben Wills had his guilty verdict overturned by an appellate court last year, a decision upheld by the New York Court of Appeals.
Wills had been found guilty of using public matching and discretionary funds to pay for personal expenses.
Wills is now weighing a run for Council District 28, according to people familiar with his thinking.
