Mark Levine Endorses Abreu In Upper Manhattan City Council Race

HARLEM, NY — One of the 14 candidates running to represent Upper Manhattan in the City Council has scored a major endorsement: the support of Mark Levine, the incumbent who has represented District 7 since 2014.

On Wednesday, Levine will endorse Shaun Abreu, a tenants' rights attorney who formerly served as Levine's deputy campaign manager during his first run City Council, Patch has learned.

The announcement will take place Wednesday afternoon outside the apartment building on West 161st Street in Washington Heights where Abreu's family was evicted when he was nine years old.

"I have watched Shaun become the leader that he is today, and there is no one better positioned to lead this district into the future than Shaun Abreu," Levine said in a news release. "Shaun is not only qualified, but his lived and shared experiences with the very same community he seeks to represent is exactly what makes him the right choice."

Abreu said he was "overjoyed" by the endorsement, citing Levine's role in passing the Right to Counsel law that guarantees legal support to families facing eviction.

"For the last 8 years, I have watched as he has fought for the communities and families that I have grown with," Abreu said.

Levine, who is prevented by term limits from running for re-election, is instead running for Manhattan Borough President. He has raised the most money in that race.

Meanwhile, more than a dozen candidates are seeking to replace Levine in District 7, which covers Morningside Heights, West Harlem, and parts of Washington Heights and the Upper West Side.

Abreu has the second-highest fundraising total in that race, trailing only Marti Allen-Cummings, an activist, drag artist and community board member.

Related coverage:

• Upper Manhattan City Council Race: Who Will Replace Mark Levine?
• Manhattan Borough President Race: Who Will Replace Gale Brewer?