The lefty Working Families Party on Tuesday endorsed self-described “moderate Democrat” Justin Brannan in the race for city comptroller.
The progressive third-party said it was backing the Brooklyn councilman over his opponent, Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine, because of his platform advocating for the working class.
“We need people who are willing to fight to make sure that in our government every ounce of energy and time is devoted to delivering solutions and relief for workers and their families, and also to make sure that every leader stands up to Trump and his band of tyrants,” Ana Maria Archilla, co-director of the WFP, said.
The left-wing group highlighted Brannan’s campaign promises to narrow the wealth gap, support the creation of a first-in-the-nation universal childcare program, help create a housing program for municipal workers and to help speed up the city’s notoriously slow payment system for non-profit reimbursements.
The term-limited Brannan was first elected in 2017 to rep the purple 47th City Council district based in Bay Ridge.
“He has shown again and again that in a district that has Republicans and Democrats, he’s able to talk to people about what brings us together, and he’s able to also stand up for the people that are most aligned,” Archilla said.
The rocker-turned-lawmaker left the council’s Progressive Caucus in 2023, the same year he told City & State: “I think if people call me a moderate Democrat, it’s probably closest to the truth. It’s certainly closer to the truth than saying I’m a democratic socialist.”
Brannan, who currently serves as the council’s finance chair, said that if elected to the citywide watchdog position, he would work to make life more affordable for working-class families who have been fleeing to less expensive locales.
The Brooklyn Dem is known for sparring with the Adams administration over cuts to the city’s more tan $112 billion budget during the migrant crisis.
“This is not a time for elected officials to be bystanders. This is not a time for us to be spectators. We cannot sit on our hands while the city spirals out of reach for working families,” Brannan, who plays guitar in the band Most Precious Blood, said at a press conference announcing the endorsement.
He promised he would continue to be a “bulldog” for working people and fight President Trump’s administration.
“We’re going to fight like hell to protect our city and to make sure that working families can thrive,” Brannan said.
Brannan already has dozens of endorsements, including from state Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and the Transportation Workers Union.
His opponent, Levine, has racked up endorsements from a 10,000-member retail workers union called the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, Manhattan Congressman Jerry Nadler and Bronx Congressman Ritchie Torres, a Democratic firebrand and potential gubernatorial challenger.
Levine has also raised more than $2.3 million for the race, compared to Brannan’s nearly $300,000.
But a campaign spokesperson said Brannan expects to receive nearly $1.5 million in public matching funds next month.
“We expect to raise and spend the maximum allowed by the CFB. With the matching funds payment in March the campaign will have already raised almost $2 million,” the rep said.
