Salamanca outraises Gibson in latest filing in Bronx borough president challenge

Term-limited New York City Council Member Rafael Salamanca is currently outraising Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson in what’s shaping up to be a competitive race between two of the Bronx’s most powerful elected officials.

Salamanca, chair of the influential Land Use Committee, raised $52,575 over the most recent fundraising period for 2025 elections, which stretched from July 12 to Oct. 7. While he didn’t formally launch his borough president campaign until mid-September, the outgoing City Council member has raised a total of $99,460 since he opened an exploratory committee for the position in February. Gibson meanwhile, who was elected as the Bronx’s first Black and first woman borough president in 2021, raised roughly $31,000 over the latest period. Like Salamanca, a long line of Gibson’s predecessors were all Puerto Rican men. Gibson’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

The biggest boon to Salamanca’s campaign is a $406,000 transfer of cash from his City Council account that puts his fundraising total at roughly $506,000 – nearly double the $262,000 Gibson’s brought in since her first term began. Salamanca currently has about $466,000 cash on hand to Gibson’s $59,000. Both candidates are participating in the city’s public matching funds program and should see a boost in funds as a result. 

This is the second time Salamanca has run for Bronx borough president. He first ran in 2021, but ultimately dropped out to focus on his City Council reelection. 

“I feel that we have momentum and I’m getting calls from friends, family members, and individuals who I have worked with in the past who have been notified that I’m running for borough president who are reaching out that want to be helpful,” Salamanca said. “I’m also focusing on the smaller contributions so that I can meet the threshold for the matching funds.”