WHEREAS, the New York City general election will be held on Nov. 2, 2021; and

WHEREAS, this election will feature candidates for the citywide offices of New York City mayor, New York City comptroller, and New York City public advocate; and

WHEREAS, the election will also feature candidates for borough president of each of the five boroughs, Manhattan district attorney and Brooklyn district attorney; and

WHEREAS, Eric Adams successfully won the Democratic Party primary for mayor held on June 22, 2021, Brad Lander won the Democratic Party primary for city comptroller held on the same day, and Jumaane Williams the Democratic Party primary for public advocate held on the same day; and

WHEREAS, UFT endorsed candidates Vanessa Gibson for Bronx borough president, Donovan Richards for Queens borough president, Alvin Bragg for Manhattan district attorney and Eric Gonzalez for Brooklyn district attorney, all of whom won their June primary elections and/or are candidates for consideration in the general election; and

WHEREAS, all candidates that the union newly considered for endorsement in the Nov. 2 election submitted a UFT candidate questionnaire and participated in candidate interviews conducted by union interview committees comprised of UFT members who represent the diversity of the union membership; and

WHEREAS, Eric Adams has pledged to prioritize the well-being of workers, fight for working people and defend the rights of union members; and

WHEREAS, as borough president, Eric Adams, supported public schools in Brooklyn, including our United Community Schools, with millions of dollars in capital grants for repairs, upgrades and new construction; and

WHEREAS, as council member, Brad Lander has a track record of support for public schools, including leading the campaign to secure air conditioning in all city classrooms and $100 million in funding to renovate decrepit school bathrooms across the city; and

WHEREAS, as city comptroller, Brad Lander promises to protect the retirement security of UFT members while making smart pension fund investments to improve the resiliency of our city’s infrastructure; and

WHEREAS, as council member, Jumaane Williams was a vocal supporter of public education and was the lead sponsor of the Paid Vacations Act, which would require that all New York City employees receive paid vacations; and

WHEREAS, as public advocate, Jumaane Williams promises to support our teachers and draw attention to the inequality in education by improving the quality of public education for students with a focus on ending the practice of chronically underfunding public schools that serve minority and immigrant communities; and

WHEREAS, Council Member Mark Levine won the June 2021 Democratic Party primary to be the next Manhattan borough president; and

WHEREAS, Mark Levine is a former bilingual math and science teacher and a former UFT member who pledges to be a staunch advocate for public schools and is committed to address overcrowding, underfunding and understaffing in city public schools; and

WHEREAS, with years of campaign experience, Mark Murphy is running a formidable campaign to be the next Staten Island borough president after winning his June 2021 Democratic Party primary; and

WHEREAS, Mark Murphy is committed to working with city labor unions and has pledged to support public schools and advocate for the needs of educators, students and their families; and

WHEREAS, it is important that the UFT unifies and stands behind candidates that it believes will act in the best interest of its members over the next four years; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, that at the recommendation of the union’s political action team, the UFT endorses Eric Adams for the New York City mayor, Brad Lander for New York City comptroller, and Jumaane Williams for New York City public advocate; and be it further

RESOLVED, that at the recommendation of the borough political action coordinators and their respective political teams, the UFT endorses Mark Levine for the Manhattan borough president and Mark Murphy for Staten Island borough president.