In the first ad for his campaign for New York City comptroller, Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine shows off his multilingual skills, speaking in Spanish, Greek, Mandarin and Hebrew.
Yes, Hebrew.
It’s a quick spot, but in 30 seconds, Levine — who is Jewish and is known among New York’s politicos for his language skills — makes the case for why New Yorkers from all backgrounds should vote for him in the June Democratic primary for the position that is essentially the city’s CFO.
“We created a credit union to help the community,” Levine, who lives in Washington Heights, says in Spanish, touting the establishment of the Trust Federal Credit Union, a New York-based community organization he helped found in the 1990s that provides small loans to low-income and immigrant families and small businesses.
“I took on corporate landlords to protect tenants,” Levine, 56, says in Mandarin.
“And built thousands of new units of affordable housing,” he adds in Hebrew, before switching to Greek.
“I have loved studying Hebrew and was so excited to be able to use it in our first ad of the campaign,” Levine said in a written statement to the New York Jewish Week when asked about the ad. “It’s a language I chose to study on my own because it felt like a vital part of my Jewish identity — and it’s deepened my connection to family, culture, and community.”
Levine added: “I’m always amazed by how much Hebrew I hear on the streets of New York City. As Comptroller, I want every New Yorker to feel seen and heard — and being able to connect with Hebrew-speaking New Yorkers in their own language is one small but meaningful way I can do that.”
Multilingualism and improving upward mobility for non-native English speakers have long been aspects of Levine’s career. Prior to his entry into politics, he was a bilingual English-Spanish math and science teacher at a school in the South Bronx. Levine and his wife, Ivelisse Suárez, are the parents of two children, Alejandro and Daniel, and they speak Spanish at home. (Their children did not learn English until they began school, Levine’s spokesperson told the New York Jewish Week.)
In addition to fluency in Spanish and Hebrew, Levine is currently learning Greek and French, according to his campaign website. He also knows some Arabic, Bengali, French and Gujarati.
Levine, a Democrat, has served as Manhattan Borough President since 2022. In the Democratic primary for comptroller — which, in deep-blue New York City, will in all likelihood determine the results of the general election — he is facing New York City Council member Justin Brannan, who has been endorsed by progressive groups like the Sunrise Movement and Working Families Party. Levine, meanwhile, has been endorsed by New York Reps. Jerry Nadler, Dan Goldman, Adriano Espaillat and Ritchie Torres, as well as a number of local unions.
Levine — who was in City Council from 2014 to 2017 before becoming Manhattan beep — debated Brannan last week. Both accused the other of being weak on Mayor Eric Adams’ budget cuts and apparent capitulation to Trump, and both said they would support whomever clinches the Democratic nomination for mayor. (Two other candidates, Kevin Parker, a state senator from Flatbush, and Ismael Malave, a civil servant, did not meet the spending qualifications set by the Campaign Finance Board to participate in the debate.)
An Emerson College poll conducted May 23-26 shows Levine in first place in the race, with 51% support, followed by Brannan with 23%, Kevin Parker with 16% and Ismael Malave with 10%.
When he ran for borough president, two of Levine’s major campaign issues were addressing the COVID-19 crisis and rising antisemitism in New York. As a member of the City Council Jewish Caucus, Levine supported a major grant that would provide security for houses of worship, and was also a sponsor of the legislation that created the Office for the Prevention of Hate Crimes.
Levine and his family are members of Hebrew Tabernacle Congregation, a Reform synagogue in Washington Heights.
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