Dinowitz resigns as chairman of Bronx Democratic County Committee

Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz said he resigned from his position as chairman of the Bronx Democratic County Committee this fall because he was no longer able to hold the internal party post and work as a court evaluator under new rules adopted by the court system.

Dinowitz said it was financially prudent for him to remain eligible to receive court appointments evaluating whether people were competent to handle their own affairs and earn income from this work. Despite giving up the title, the assemblyman said he would remain just as involved and engaged with the county committee, an organization of elected representatives that oversees Democratic affairs in the borough.

“Being that I haven’t had a pay raise in 18 years, I thought the only responsible thing to do was to choose the potential income over the title,” Dinowitz said, noting that a court case alleging that Bronx Democratic Party officials committed fraud while selecting its members had no impact on his decision. “It had nothing to do with anything else, nothing to do with your articles, or county committee, whatever, the lawsuit …” 

As county committee chairman, Dinowitz helped run the biennial organizational meetings where the party selects its leaders, who in turn sit on the executive committee. Assemblyman Marcos Crespo currently chairs the executive committee, which has more influence in party affairs.

Bronx Democratic County Committee Executive Director Anthony Perez said the organization held an executive committee meeting Nov. 18 and voted to have Assemblywoman Latoya Joyner fill the position vacated by Dinowitz.

During that meeting, the committee also voted to recommend that Rosanna Vargas continue in her role as the Bronx Democratic Commissioner on the city Board of Elections and to add three new vice chairs – Kolaco Acqui, Linda Kemp and Miguelina Camilo. Perez said the three new vice chairs were leaders of color hailing from different neighborhoods who would help further diversify the executive leadership team.

“We're excited to welcome Latoya Joyner, along with her political and legal experience, and our new vice chairs to the leadership, and look forward to continuing to work closely with Jeffrey Dinowitz, who will always be an integral part of our organization,” Perez said in a statement.