Summary of the key information from the candidate debates for the New York 25th State Senate District and the 56th State Assembly District

[Ralph Yozzo]

It was good to see these local representatives and candidates actually showing up at a local forum.  It would be good to see these local representatives and candidates throughout the year instead of just before the elections. 

Deed theft was a big topic repeated over and over again.  But there was no mention of the biggest which is the property tax advisory commission attempt to raise North Brooklyn property tax by 100 to 900 percent.  

The question that was not asked is where is the government study and calculator to help the constituency understand the effect of these property tax changes before they're enacted. 

The former comptroller has been asked this question and also the state senator and they simply say it's too complicated. 

But how can we pass a bill without understanding the effect of it. 

To see how this so-called advisory commission recommendation will affect you go to https://zohran.web.app/newtax

Enter your address and it will walk you through the effect to your property or any property. 

See this video to join the taxpayers of New York mailing list https://youtube.com/shorts/8SSlcHaYBxM?feature=share

See this video to show an example of using the tax calculator https://youtube.com/shorts/AFxBqaTRKmg?feature=share

Background on the Forum & Venue

• The Location: The event took place at the Magnolia Tree Earth Center, a community-led organization founded in 1972 by Hattie Carthan. Carthan famously worked to protect local green space, planted over 1,500 trees in Bedford-Stuyvesant, and successfully galvanized the community to save a historic Magnolia grandiflora tree and three nearby brownstones from demolition.
• The Tone: Moderators and organizers repeatedly emphasized keeping the forum a "safe space" for respectful civic engagement, despite tense and heated exchanges among the candidates and audience members.

State Senate District 25 Debate

Marlon Rice (Challenger)

• Background & Motivation: Born and raised in the district, Rice has a background in community engagement, education services, and local programming (such as organizing block parties and working for the Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation). He emphasized that the local legislative seats were created specifically by past black leaders to give black people a voice, and he argued that the community is currently experiencing massive displacement.
• Platform & "Black Agenda": Rice focused heavily on improving constituent services by physically placing his main office in Brownsville where he believes it is needed most. To build black wealth and stop displacement, he advocated for alternative homeownership methods, funding community centers in every NYCHA development, and implementing direct financial tools like baby bonds. He also called for reforming Area Median Income (AMI) metrics and dedicating $500 million annually to repairing NYCHA housing.

Jabari Brisport (Incumbent State Senator)

• Background & Motivation: A former public school teacher elected in 2020, Brisport's political framework is rooted in democratic socialism.
• Platform & Accomplishments: Brisport highlighted his "tax-the-rich" campaigns, which successfully brought billions of dollars in new tax revenue into public schools. He strongly advocated for sweeping tenant protections, including a weakened version of the "Good Cause Eviction" bill, and the creation of a Social Housing Development Authority to build permanently affordable housing outside of market speculation. For childcare, he celebrated securing pilot universal childcare slots in Ocean Hill-Brownsville while pushing to raise wages for the predominantly minority women workforce in that sector.

Key Exchanges

• Deed Theft & Evictions: Brisport detailed bills he championed to criminalize deed theft, allow clerks to pause suspicious sales, and lift the statute of limitations for victims. Rice counter-argued that laws are not enough to stop the crime and that performative politics must be replaced by direct, door-to-door community legal education.
• Political Attacks: Rice accused Brisport of falsely claiming in a fundraising email that Rice took money from AIPAC, which Rice called "just politics". Brisport responded that he only suggested Rice might be supported by a real estate-affiliated PAC, and in turn publicly questioned a donation Rice received from a specific individual named Earl Davis.

State Assembly District 56 Debate

Michael Bailey (Challenger)

• Background & Identity: A lawyer, community organizer, and product of local community centers, Bailey explicitly aligned himself with the "revolutionary movement" rather than the civil rights movement.
• Platform: Bailey argued that the current system is designed to marginalize and displace residents, meaning it requires breaking rather than reforming. He called for implementing direct community control over city and state agencies (including the MTA), creating a defense fund to supply free legal counsel to low-income homeowners facing foreclosure, and bringing major cultural institutions like the African Street Festival back to Bed-Stuy. He strongly emphasized the need for "direct action," noting his own hands-on legal work helping activists and residents avoid jail or eviction in housing courts.

Ian Huntley (Challenger)

• Background & Identity: A 17-year Bed-Stuy resident, retail worker, and son of a Guyanese immigrant, Huntley represents the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) platform and was endorsed by Senator Brisport and Council Member Chi Ossé.
• Platform: Huntley centered his platform on the immediate struggles of working-class families trying to survive high costs of living. He advocated for an immediate eviction moratorium on contested deed-theft cases, universal childcare ("cradle to college"), and investing in community land trusts to keep projects like the Marcus Garvey Armory in community hands rather than private real estate developers.

Stephanie Zinerman (Incumbent Assembly Member)

• Background & Accomplishments: With a career background in workforce development, Zinerman emphasized her record of bringing state budget dollars back to the district—including funding a local museum, a health home for the Bed-Stuy Volunteer Ambulance Corps, and securing $110 million to re-imagine the Marcus Garvey Armory.
• Platform: Zinerman preached a message of "operational unity" and working within the structure of government to pass legislation. She highlighted a recent legislative victory requiring banks to verify contested deeds before acting on mortgages. Zinerman defended her record on housing education, hosting legal workshops on wills and estates to protect black property owners before a crisis happens.

Key Exchanges

• Protests vs. Governance: A sharp divide emerged regarding political tactics. Huntley and Bailey praised local politicians who put their bodies on the line and get arrested at protests to halt evictions. Zinerman firmly pushed back, stating: "I'm trying to keep black boys from being arrested. It is not my job to get arrested. It is my job to go in there and utilize the situation." She argued that leaders should challenge the legal validity of warrants with sheriffs rather than seeking out arrests.
• Funding and Gatekeeping: Bailey accused incumbent politicians of using nonprofit funding as a "force field" or gatekeeper to secure re-election. Zinerman countered by explaining the limitations of state funding rules and accused certain opposing political factions of previously defunding established local entities like the Bro Experience in order to redistribute wealth.