A LEADER WHO CHANGED THE NARRATIVE
COVER PHOTO: VICTOR BRACA – TOP NOTCH VISUALS
THIS NOVEMBER OUR COMMUNITY HAS AN OPPORTUNITY IT HAS NOT HAD IN A LONG TIME, IF EVER — TO RE-ELECT A REPUBLICAN ELECTED OFFICIAL IN RECORD NUMBERS — TO RE-ELECT INNA VERNIKOV, OUR FEARLESS COUNCILWOMAN, TO THE NEW YORK CITY COUNCIL.
For a long time, our community has been told by many that it must register, and vote for Democrats — even though the Democratic Party stands against many of our beliefs and values. The Democrats over-tax us, allow criminals to roam free, and our streets to become increasingly dangerous. We are told that Republicans cannot, by their mere existence, help the constituents navigate the overly progressive government institutions, get us the funding we need for our community’s infrastructure, and help the faith-based charities that our community is known for.
Well, Inna Vernikov clearly dispelled the myth and changed that narrative. She has been effectively leading the fight against antisemitism in the city, especially at CUNY (yes, the same CUNY that just hired the antisemitic Marc Lamont Hill). From sponsoring legislation, to helping with court cases, Inna has been a leader — getting her Democrat colleagues to cross the aisle and vote for her legislation.
But that is not all, Inna has also brought record amounts of funding back into our community. Remember, this money is from our taxes. Anyone that lives in New York City knows that the streets have gone back to the days before Mayor Giuliani cleaned them up, literally and figuratively. The streets are filthy — with garbage and litter becoming a real issue. Inna hit this issue head-on, sending $280,000 in extra funding to our local DSNY district to help combat this issue, and slowly, the streets are getting cleaner. More work needs to be done, and Inna is clearly in this for the long haul.
Crime is heading back to the bad old days, when NYC was known as the “Ungovernable City”. There are a few councilmembers that stand tall for their support of our finest, the NYPD. Inna Vernikov is one of them, and she is a leader in this issue, especially when it comes to antisemitic attacks. Inna is at the forefront of making sure the city no longer ignores attacks on our community. Inna also funded three auxiliary vans for all precincts within her council district. We need a fighter like her to continue being our representative, because few have the temerity to fight the anti-citizen machine that is the NYC government like Inna Vernikov.
As for the funding for our faith-based organizations that our community is known for, and that we are proud to spotlight to those outside our community as beacons of what good citizenship looks like, Inna has brought record funding into our community.
Flatbush Hatzolah, Shomrim, Shmira, Amudim, United Task Force, Ohel, Chasdei Lev, HASC, Chai Lifeline, and of course the Sephardic Bikur Holim, are but a few of our communitiy’s organizations that have received funding. Again, funding that is actually our money that Inna, using her abilities to cross over the aisle and bring sensible minds to agreement, was able to bring back into the community.
And let’s not forget, a major component of local officeholders is helping their constituents with regular day-to-day issues. This is something we have been told for a long time no Republican would be able to do for us. As a Republican, Inna has put together a staff in her office that, in their first year, closed over 4,000 constituent service cases, making her office #1 in Brooklyn and #2 in the entire city! That means that by her first “half term” she will have helped thousands — either you or someone you know, with an issue they have with government.
This is all why we must go out, and not only re-elect Inna Vernikov to the NYC council, but we must come out in droves, giving her a win with numbers larger than her historic win in 2021, when she won in a landslide. We must send a message that our community is not for sale, that we will not take the attacks, both in rhetoric and physically, by holding those responsible in government for allowing it to fester, that we will send a true fighter to represent us back to City Hall and let our voices be heard.
So, on Tuesday, November 7th (or early starting October 28th), regardless of whichever party you are registered in, let your voice be heard by voting to re-elect Councilwoman Inna Vernikov.
Paid for by Friends of Inna Vernikov
