Brooklyn District 39 City Council Race: Where Things Stand

PARK SLOPE, BROOKLYN — With five weeks remaining until the June 22 primary elections, the stage is set for candidates in Brooklyn's 39th District to finish the race.

Seven Democrats are in the running to replace term-limited Council Member Brad Lander, who is vying to become the city's next comptroller. The candidates will face off in the June 22 primary election.

In the coming weeks, Patch will publish the results of question-and-answer forms sent to each candidate, shedding light on each person's policy priorities.

With no polling available for the race, it's impossible to know how each campaign is faring. A look at fundraising and endorsements, however, can provide some clues.

The Candidates

First, a brief recap of who's running in the Democratic primary:

• Shahana Hanif, a well-known local organizer who has also worked as Lander's director of organizing and community engagement, which includes running the Participatory Budgeting program.
• Mamnunul M Haq, a former cab driver who founded the New York Taxi Workers Alliance and now works as a Community Health Worker and Program Associate at NYU.
• Justin M Krebs, a former leader of the national campaigns team at the nonprofit MoveOn, as well as a community organizer, entrepreneur and author.
• Briget A Rein, a current member of Community Board 6 and self-described political activist who has worked for the United Federation of Teachers and served as a government liaison to City Council.
• Douglas Schneider, a civil rights attorney who serves as a district leader for the Brooklyn Democratic Party and has previously served on the District Committee for Lander's participatory budgeting.
• Brandon West, a former president of the New Kings Democrats and a campaign manager for the Center for Popular Democracy on their national Voting Rights and Democracy program's campaign.
• Jessica Simmons, a local teacher and principal who is the secretary on the Community Education Council for District 13.

The Money Race

In a slight lead in the latest finance filings is Hanif, who has raised a combined $241,129 — about $81,000 of which is from private donations and $160,000 in matching public funds, according to Campaign Finance Board disclosures.

Not far behind are Rein and West, who both raised just over $75,000 in private donations. West's slightly larger public fund means he lands in second place, raising $235,730 combined, while Rein has raised a total of $218,676.

Krebs, Schneider and Haq have also each maxed out on public funds, each receiving just over $160,000 each. In that group, Krebs has the most private money raised, with $58,551-worth of donations by the latest filing.

Simmons is the only of the seven candidates who did not qualify for public funds. She has raised $1,000, records show.

All of the candidates aside from Simmons — who has no donations recorded on an interactive map outlining contributions — have received a majority of their donations from small-dollar contributions. All six have raised more than 95 percent of their private money from contributions of $250 or less, the map shows.

The map also shows where in the city the contributions have come from and whether they are from individuals, committees or other groups. All but Rein — who has gotten 17 percent of her donations from committees, unions or other sources — have received 100 percent of their donations from individuals, the map shows.

Who's Endorsing Who

West and Rein have gathered perhaps the most high-profile backings from other elected officials.

West's corner includes former gubernatorial candidate Cynthia Nixon and a line-up of newly elected state legislators who were, like him, endorsed by the Democratic Socialists of America.

Rein has raked in endorsements from the state's comptroller, two of New York's representatives in Congress — Tom Suozzi and Carolyn Maloney — and a number of state legislators.

Both also have endorsements from local organizations, a full list of which can be found on their websites.

Hanif has snagged support from the Working Families Party, Lambda Independent Democrats, Central Brooklyn Independent Democrats, Indivisible Nation BK, the New York Immigration Coalition Action and several other groups.

Krebs' endorsements include a list of 100 local New York City artists, a number of parent leaders from the borough and the League of Independent Theater.

Schneider, Haq and Simmons all did not list any endorsements on their websites.

The open seat in District 39 is one of more than 30 across the city, as term limits will install new members in nearly two-thirds of the City Council's 51 seats.

Park Slope Patch will have ongoing coverage of the City Council race ahead of the June 22 primary, including candidate responses to the issues raised in our neighborhood survey.

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Patch reporter Nick Garber contributed to this report.