Joann Ariola prevails as NYC Council minority leader

Let’s try this again, shall we? 

The New York City Council Republican caucus put to rest several weeks of turmoil on Friday as it redid a vote for its new minority leader electing Queens Council Member Joann Ariola. Once again, the vote was held without all members present.

But this saga would not be complete without another plot twist: In addition to Ariola’s win, fellow Queens Council Member Vickie Paladino is the new minority whip, taking over from Brooklyn Council Member Inna Vernikov.  

The City Council minority leader has much, much less power than the majority leader in the legislative body dominated by Democrats, but they do get their own office. Still, Ariola was thrilled. 

The council’s previous minority leader, Joe Borelli of Staten Island, stepped down on Jan. 31 to take a job at the lobbying firm Chartwell Strategy Group. Before he left, Borelli held a vote to elect his successor on Jan. 28, and he threw his support behind fellow Staten Islander David Carr. Carr was elected unanimously by the three Republicans present. The only problem was that the other three members of the caucus – Ariola, Paladino and Bronx Council Member Kristy Marmorato – didn’t show up to the vote. They said they were notified of the vote too late and were unable to attend, and they proceeded to challenge the result in a letter to Council Speaker Adrienne Adams on the grounds that there was no quorum. Borelli and Carr objected to that, saying the caucus bylaws do not say a quorum is needed. 

Ultimately, the City Council’s attorney sided with Ariola and instructed the group to hold another vote. But by then, Borelli had resigned, and the balance of power had shifted.

With Paladino and Marmorato in Ariola’s camp and Vernikov and Borelli in Carr’s, having a new vote after Borelli’s Jan. 31 departure was in Ariola’s interest, as she would end up winning in a 3-2 vote – or at least, that was the logic. In practice? Only Ariola, Paladino and Marmorato showed up to Friday’s vote, said Ariola and Alie Ziraschi, Paladino’s chief of staff. Sounds familiar, right? But with Borelli gone, three members makes a quorum in the now five-member caucus.

After initially telling City & State Monday he was prepared to make his case to the speaker that “(he) is confident that we followed all the applicable rules” in the previous vote, Carr reluctantly reversed course in a statement less than two hours before Friday’s vote. “I continue to believe that decision (from the City Council attorney) to be gravely wrong. That being said … I will continue to be a leader and work with my colleagues on these crucial matters moving forward, no matter my title.” 

Ariola, former Queens Republican Party chair, and Paladino, Queens social media gadfly, have a history of bad blood – though they both say that’s in the past. “Vickie Paladino has a very strong voice, and we have a lot of solution-oriented legislation that we believe Democrats that are in the council may not know about, and she would be wonderful in getting that message out to them so that they could sign on and we could get more legislation passed,” Ariola said.

Asked why she did not name Vernikov minority whip once again, Ariola said, “I felt that I needed to have a team that I could work with, and I felt that Paladino was the person for the position.” Was that inspired by any ill will toward Vernikov for backing Carr? “Choosing Vickie Paladino as the minority whip had nothing to do with ill will towards Council Member Vernikov,” Ariola said. 

Once Ariola’s election is certified by the council, she will be formally recognized as the new minority leader at the council’s next stated meeting on Feb. 13.