Your guide to NYC's public proceedings.
Q&A
Comptroller Lander discusses expanding the franchise and building a coalition for housing reform
0:14:57
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152 sec
Commissioner Diane Savino continues to question Comptroller Brad Lander on his opposition to open primaries, contrasting it with his support for other franchise-expanding measures like noncitizen voting.
Lander maintains that eliminating party primaries is fundamentally different and harmful.
Commissioner Shams DaBaron then asks about building support for the housing proposals, and Lander expresses optimism about creating a broad coalition to address the city's housing crisis.
- Lander supports expanding the franchise through measures like even-year elections and universal mail-in voting, but not by eliminating party primaries.
- He argues that party primaries are essential for debating ideas and choosing a party's "fighter" for the general election.
- When asked about the housing proposals, Lander believes there is a growing consensus for building more housing across the city.
- He is hopeful that a broad coalition of housing advocates, fair housing groups, and community members can be built to support the commission's proposals.
Shams DaBaron
0:14:57
Yes.
0:14:58
Real quick.
0:14:59
How are doing, Brian?
Brad Lander
0:15:00
Nice to see you, Chance.
Shams DaBaron
0:15:00
Good to see you.
0:15:03
So I wanted to ask you something about housing.
0:15:07
What type of coalition you think can be formed, and how should that be formed to support the housing proposals that you see have been suggested?
Brad Lander
0:15:17
Thank you for this question and even more for the work to put these four ballot propositions on the ballot that I think really get at this.
0:15:23
I think we have an exciting moment right now when there is broader than expected support for the idea that we need to build more housing all across especially in the neighborhoods that haven't haven't done so with a real focus on affordability.
0:15:40
That has not been a broad consensus for recent years, and some of us have been fighting those battles, but it's an exciting moment.
0:15:47
I thought it was really significant that when Democratic nominee Mamdani was asked in The New York Times, what's one thing you've changed your mind on?
0:15:55
That this was the answer he gave, that he said we need private sector produced housing within this sort of mixed market context if we're going to confront the affordability crisis.
0:16:04
And it seems to me if we could have a coalition of people who have long been for more housing growth, who have been fighting for fair housing, who see that the affordability crisis is crushing, people who build and maintain the housing, people who love their neighborhoods and want to find a way to have them be more affordable even as we invest in open space and community institutions and culture.
0:16:25
That seems really exciting to me.
0:16:27
And the four proposals you've put here that help tilt the playing field more in the direction of building the housing and the affordable housing our neighborhoods need, I think you've actually done a good job of building the ground for that coalition.
0:16:41
It's honestly one of the reasons I'm here tonight.
0:16:43
Like, I'm not here tonight just to say I encourage no on six.
0:16:47
I wanna be broadly supportive with a big coalition on one through five, not just and it won't be easy to pass all those proposals because there still are a lot of folks who aren't yet sure.
0:16:59
I know that building more housing is what we need to confront the affordability crisis.
0:17:03
But even past November into the next administration, we're going to need a broad coalition if we're going to actually follow through on, implement, and build the housing that's here.
0:17:13
I find that really exciting.
0:17:15
I think you guys have set the table for it.
0:17:17
Like, you got an assignment from the mayor.
0:17:19
You've done it really well, and I'm hopeful that we can collectively build on it for years to come.
0:17:25
Okay.
Richard R. Buery Jr.
0:17:25
Until I have two two questions, one about elections, one about housing.