Brooklyn Democratic Party district leaders voted Tuesday night to enact significant changes to the county party’s bylaws, a move reformers assert will help current chair Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn maintain control of the organization. The vote proceeded despite calls from prominent state Democratic officials, including Gov. Kathy Hochul, Mayor Eric Adams, Sen. Chuck Schumer, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, and Attorney General Letitia James, urging a reversal of course.
According to individuals familiar with the voting process, the changes passed with the support of 21 district leaders. Among these were eight outgoing members who had lost their seats in the June primaries. These approvals clear the path to add numerous new seats to the executive committee in advance of Bichotte Hermelyn’s re-election bid for party chair. Between 18 and 20 district leaders reportedly opposed the measures in individual votes.
The decision appears to thwart the efforts of a reform slate of district leaders who had gathered enough votes after the June primaries to potentially elect their own county boss for the first time in nearly two decades. Reformers argue that the changes will disenfranchise thousands of voters.
The closed-door meeting took place at the Thomas Jefferson Democratic Club in Mill Basin, which is run by Frank Seddio, a former county Democratic party chair who still serves as a district leader. Journalists were denied entry to the proceedings. Seddio stated that executive committee meetings are private, although some individuals not on the committee were permitted entry, including Bichotte Hermelyn’s husband and a Manhattan Democratic party insider.
After a nearly four-hour meeting, Bichotte Hermelyn departed without speaking to reporters. A statement released by the Brooklyn Democratic Party on Wednesday morning asserted that the vote expanded representation on the Executive Committee, adding leaders from every Assembly District and building a party that reflects Brooklyn. The statement described the vote as "open, fair and democratic."
Maintaining Control of the Party
The vote occurred as Chair Bichotte Hermelyn was reportedly close to losing control of the party leadership she has held for six years. Reformers, aligned with New Kings Democrats and the campaign Brooklyn Can’t Wait, had secured enough district leader seats in the June primaries to establish a majority on the voting body for the first time in nearly two decades.
With 22 newly elected district leaders, this group had intended to back longtime district leader Julio Peña for party chair in the fall. District leaders are unpaid, elected officials who represent every Assembly district in Brooklyn and constitute the party's executive committee. Historically, only these voting members decided the party chairperson every two years.
Facing the potential end of her tenure, Bichotte Hermelyn initiated a hastily scheduled vote for changes to party rules, which she characterized as "reforms" aimed at expanding the executive committee. Her critics contend that these changes will allow the party establishment to fill the new positions with loyalists and proxy votes, thereby nullifying the impact of the newly elected district leaders.
Seddio defended the changes, suggesting they were an opportunity to democratize positions that progressive factions have sought. Renee Collymore, a former district leader who lost her seat to a reform-aligned challenger, expressed hope that the changes would lead to greater inclusion and participation within the party. She suggested that elected officials opposing the vote were under pressure.
Prior to the vote, reformers filed a lawsuit, alleging that the changes violated the party’s bylaws and state election law. A judge declined to intervene before the vote, citing insufficient evidence of irreparable harm. However, attorneys for the reformers stated their intention to refile the lawsuit following the vote.