Darlene Mealy

Darlene Mealy
Darlene Mealy
Member of the New York City Council from the 41st district
	In office; January 1, 2006 – December 31, 2017
Preceded by	Tracy L. Boyland
Succeeded by	Alicka Ampry-Samuel
Personal details
Political party	Democratic
Alma mater	Manhattan Community College
Website	Official website

Darlene Mealy is an American politician who served in the New York City Council from the 41st district from 2006 to 2017. She is a Democrat. The district includes Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brownsville, Bushwick, Crown Heights, East Flatbush and Prospect Lefferts Gardens in Brooklyn.

Life and career

Mealy was born in Detroit, Michigan and attended public schools, graduating from George Wingate High School. Following high school, she attended the Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC) and later pursued coursework in Labor & Women’s Studies offered by Cornell University.

Prior to her election to the New York City Council, Mealy was employed at the New York City Transit Authority for 17 years, in the Department of Buses Technical Services Division.[1]

Controversies

In 2008, Mealy was accused of attempting to funnel $25,000 in public monies to a Brooklyn block association, the Fulton-Atlantic-Ralph-Rochester Community Association (FARR), which, according to the New York Post was run by her sister.[2] She brought controversial attention to herself in 2009 when she voted to give $5,000 of public money to Lynval Samuels (also known as Dr. Bidi XiLi Bey), for teaching "etymology". Referred to by some as a lunatic,[3] Samuels "has been a fixture at Union St. and Utica Ave. for years, neighbors said - stopping traffic, splattering paint on parking meters and fire hydrants, and handing out flyers for his self-styled etymology classes."[4]

Mealy was also highlighted by the press for a history of questionable housing deals she was involved in before becoming a councilwoman. In 1993, when Mealy was still with the MTA, she and her sister moved into a 3-bedroom, low-income apartment in Bushwick. These apartments were only available to families on limited incomes, specifically, those making less than $15,200 a year. Within two years, however, Mealy and her sister had purchased a $90,000 brownstone.[5]

In September 2014, Mealy had her landlord arrested after he had changed the locks on her political offices for not paying her rent for five months. After the landlord's release from jail, he had three massive signs made that he hanged from the building’s fire escape. They declared that Mealy was a "deadbeat tenant."[6]

New York City Council

Mealy was first elected to the 41st District of the New York City Council in 2005 after defeating William Boyland, Jr., a member of the famed Boyland political family. She was re-elected in 2009 after narrowly besting Tracy E. Boyland.[7]

In 2010, Mealy was also elected as the Democratic District Leader for the 55th Assembly District in Brooklyn after defeating Latrice Walker, the legal counsel to Congresswoman Yvette Clarke and future assemblymember.[8] Mealy was re-elected to her third term on the City Council in 2013, beating her Democratic rival Kathleen Daniel 66% to 20%.[9]

Mealy currently chairs the Contracts Committee. She is also the co-chair of the Council’s Brooklyn delegation, and is a member of the Black, Latino and Asian Caucus and the Women’s Caucus.

She courted attention when she was televised tearfully casting her "yes" vote regarding Mayor Michael Bloomberg's efforts to overturn a referendum limiting him to two terms as New York City's Mayor. She had previously stated that she opposed the measure.[10] In 2011, Mealy earned the distinction of missing the highest percentage of meetings and hearings she was supposed to have attended - 24%.[11]

Election history
Location	Year	Election	Results
NYC Council District 41	2005	Democratic Primary	√ Darlene Mealy 46.77% William Boyland, Jr. 18.85% Danny King 9.06% Royston Antoine 5.98% Stanley Kinard 5.11% David R. Miller 3.50% Alicka Ampry-Samuel 3.23%
NYC Council District 41	2005	General	√ Darlene Mealy (D) 90.14% A. Brinmore Britton (R) 6.95% Naquan Ah Muhammad 2.91%
NYC Council District 41	2009	Democratic Primary	√ Darlene Mealy 36.83% Tracy L. Boyland 35.80% Tulani Kinard 20.19% Anthony Herbert 7.18%
NYC Council District 41	2009	General	√ Darlene Mealy (D) 95.15% Rose Laney (R) 4.51%
NYC Council District 41	2013	Democratic Primary	√ Darlene Mealy 66.34% Kathleen Daniel 19.92% Stanley Kinard 13.74%
NYC Council District 41	2013	General	√ Darlene Mealy (D) 97.31% Bilal Malik (I) 2.62%

References

"Profiling Council Member Darlene Mealy" July 26, 2012 New York Amsterdam News, Accessed November 5, 2013.
"Really Sickening Vote," October 25, 2008, The New York Post, Accessed November 10, 2013.
"Bloomberg Gets the Lefty Endorsement," July 10, 2009, The New York Observer, Accessed November 10, 2013.
"Brooklyn councilwoman wants to give $5,000 of your money to wacky etymology teacher Lynval Samuels," June 20, 2009 The New York Daily News, Accessed November 5, 2013.
"Some City Council members cutting corners to obtain affordable housing," March 21, 2013 The New York Daily News, Accessed November 5, 2013.
"'Deadbeat' Brooklyn Pol Gets Her Landlord Arrested," September 2, 2014 The New York Post, Accessed October 16, 2014.
"Primary losers taking their cases to court: Tracy Boyland said fraud an issue, results 'invalid'", October 6, 2009, The New York Daily News, Accessed November 10, 2013.
"Will Vito veto Brooklyn voters? Upstart challengers vs. the borough boss," August 26, 2010, The New York Daily NewsAccessed November 10, 2013.
NYC Board of Elections – District 41 Democratic primary
"How a Councilwoman Changed Her Mind," October 23, 2008, The New York Times, Accessed November 10, 2013.
"News analysis reveals several Brooklyn City Council members who miss many meetings, propose few bills: Councilwomen Darlene Mealy, Sara Gonzalez, Diana Reyna top list of lawmakers who collect 'lulu' bonuses for doing little" October 18, 2012, The New York Daily News Accessed November 5, 2013.

External links

New York City Council website
@cmdarlenemealy (official twitter)
"Darlene Mealy Must Go" blogsite

Political offices
Preceded by Tracy L. Boyland	New York City Council, 41st District 2006–2017	Succeeded by Alicka Ampry-Samuel

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[1] "Profiling Council Member Darlene Mealy" July 26, 2012 New York Amsterdam News, Accessed November 5, 2013.

[2] "Really Sickening Vote," October 25, 2008, The New York Post, Accessed November 10, 2013.

[3] "Bloomberg Gets the Lefty Endorsement," July 10, 2009, The New York Observer, Accessed November 10, 2013.

[4] "Brooklyn councilwoman wants to give $5,000 of your money to wacky etymology teacher Lynval Samuels," June 20, 2009 The New York Daily News, Accessed November 5, 2013.

[5] "Some City Council members cutting corners to obtain affordable housing," March 21, 2013 The New York Daily News, Accessed November 5, 2013.

[6] "'Deadbeat' Brooklyn Pol Gets Her Landlord Arrested," September 2, 2014 The New York Post, Accessed October 16, 2014.

[7] "Primary losers taking their cases to court: Tracy Boyland said fraud an issue, results 'invalid'", October 6, 2009, The New York Daily News, Accessed November 10, 2013.

[8] "Will Vito veto Brooklyn voters? Upstart challengers vs. the borough boss," August 26, 2010, The New York Daily NewsAccessed November 10, 2013.

[9] NYC Board of Elections – District 41 Democratic primary

[10] "How a Councilwoman Changed Her Mind," October 23, 2008, The New York Times, Accessed November 10, 2013.

[11] "News analysis reveals several Brooklyn City Council members who miss many meetings, propose few bills: Councilwomen Darlene Mealy, Sara Gonzalez, Diana Reyna top list of lawmakers who collect 'lulu' bonuses for doing little" October 18, 2012, The New York Daily News Accessed November 5, 2013.