Council pushback keeps Linda Tigani as NYC racial equity commission chair until next summer

Mayor Zohran Mamdani's plan to replace the head of the city's independent racial equity watchdog has been pushed back to next summer after City Council members objected. Mamdani said Wednesday that Linda Tigani, chair of the Commission on Racial Equity (CORE) since 2023, will stay in the job until then, amNY and City & State reported.

The mayor made the announcement at an unrelated press conference in Sunset Park, minutes after Tigani and her supporters rallied on the steps of City Hall, according to City & State. He said he and the Council had agreed to extend her term and that he wants to put forward Christopher Alexander, executive director of the NAACP New York State Conference, to succeed her.

Why the change stalled

• Under the City Charter, the mayor and the Council speaker must jointly appoint CORE's chair, who can serve up to three three-year terms.
• The Council's 35-member Black, Latino and Asian Caucus wrote to Mamdani on Oct. 27 that it could not support a new chair "at this time," arguing a change would interrupt the commission's work on reparations and a truth, healing and reconciliation process, amNY reported.
• Speaker Julie Menin relayed her colleagues' view that Tigani should stay for an extended period, a Council spokesperson told amNY. Her office is still vetting Alexander for a possible August 2027 start, and his appointment is not final.
• Tigani's first term began Aug. 1, 2023, and expired July 31. With no successor appointed, her tenure is set to extend automatically by one year when the charter's 90-day appointment deadline runs out on Oct. 29, according to amNY.

A commission that has challenged City Hall

CORE reviews the city's racial equity plans and checks agencies' compliance with the charter. The commission sued over missed deadlines for the first plan, and in August a Manhattan Supreme Court judge found that both former Mayor Eric Adams and Mamdani had missed them, though the current administration to a lesser extent, amNY reported. In September, the commission said the final plan did not meet basic charter requirements. City Hall has pointed to more than 800 strategies across 45 agencies in that plan.

Council members including Farah Louis, Althea Stevens and Carmen De La Rosa spoke for Tigani at Wednesday's rally, City & State reported. Asked about reports of a strained relationship, Mamdani thanked Tigani for her service and said Alexander could hold the administration accountable. Alexander previously led the state Office of Cannabis Management and resigned in May 2024 after a review ordered by Gov. Kathy Hochul found management problems and licensing delays, amNY noted.