Yorman Nunez (pictured), a 20-year-old former community organizer, has dropped his insurgent bid to unseat 14th District Council Member Maria Baez, leaving just four candidates left in the race.
In a telephone interview, Nunez said he made a "stategic decision" not to file his petition signatures, which he and his campaign had been working day and night to compile for the past month.
Although he was disappointed that he wouldn't see this race through until election day, Nunez said his candidacy was never just about getting elected. "What our campaign was about was changing the political landscape of the Bronx and educating the community. We're trying to change the way candidates are chosen. We don't want it to be three people in a room deciding who our candidates are."
Nunez, a product of the Northwest Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition and their youth arm Sistas and Brothas United (SBU), said he made the decision after countless meetings with friends, campaign staffers and advisors.
Nunez said he and his small army of volunteer campaign staffers are still deciding where and how to direct their energy and dropped a few hints about what that might mean. "We are ending the campaign, still seeing what we want to do next. There's some big fish to fry. That could mean Espada, it could mean this mayoral race," he said. "For sure what we’re interested in is building the base."
For now, he has not decide to throw his support behind any of the other candidates in the 14th District. Aside from Baez, there is Fernando Cabrera, Yudelka Tapia and Miguel Santana. All of the candidates have said they expected to have more than enough petition signatures to qualify for the ballot. "They have three months to convince me who to vote for. I don’t think we’re going to help out our candidate," Nunez said.
Nunez said his campaign "represented a new way of doing things." In the end, Nunez said his camp decided they wanted "build for future," rather than stay in the race this summer.
We'll have more on Nunez's campaign in the next edition of the Norwood News.
Friday, July 17, 2009
20-Year-Old Council Candidate Bows Out Of 14th District Race
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14th council district,
yorman nunez
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Hey, I really miss you man. I haven't seen you in church for a while. Now since your dropping out of the race you can come back to my cell group friday at 7:30 new life outreach. Tonight we having a Youth blast so bring all your friends so you can experience the power of God. You did the right thing today. Good luck and hope to see you soon. Soldiers On the Front Line
ReplyDeleteInteresting!
ReplyDeleteI respect Yorman and his team for making the brave but very difficult decision to bow out of the race. Bowing out of a race when you have many people who believe in you and worked tirelessly for you, is not an easy thing to do.
ReplyDeleteIt was not easy, but it was necessary. If Yorman had run he would have only increased the possibility of the incumbent winning because he didn't have any feasible chance of winning. By deciding not to run, he is demonstrating that he really wants change in this community and that his running was about more than his ego. That is what being a leader is about: making sacrifices and tough decisions. Yorman Nunez has a lot of promise and as a resident of the 14th District, I am excited for his future.
Moving forward, I hope that he joins forces with one of the candidates that he thinks represents his vision the most. In races like these, when so much is at stake, it is important for those leaders with prinicples to stand together to fight the status quo.
No one should make the mistake of thinking change will come easy. While the time may be now, there are many powerful people who will do everything they can to make the time four years from now.
This is a positive development for the community.
ReplyDeleteThis was a very strategic and wise decision. Going against the Democratic and WFP endorsed candidate would surely have stripped the parties support for him in any potential future races. Im glad that he has gracefully chosen to bow out. Im sure that the next "intelligent" move would be to back Cabrera.. Not only is he consistently fighting for the armory and the old Fordham library, but he is also a man of integrity and principle. The D14 race just got a lot more interesting: Let's wait and see where Yorman will cast his lot.
ReplyDeleteWith time he will definitly make his mark. I have no doubt that his intentions are good and that he sincerely wants change for the community he grew up in.
ReplyDeleteW@ow...This is a shocker..
ReplyDeleteBut there is no doubt that Mr Nunez will be our future elected offical in waiting
http://www.westsidebx.blogspot.com
As a new youth voter and community organizer from Fordham Rd, I have a great deal of respect for Nuñez. I'm sure that this isn't the end or him, and I hope he supports the candidate who he can most indentify with and who will bring the change to the community
ReplyDeleteAs others have said it takes a real leader to step aside for the greater good. The question is... Is this what Mr. Nunez is doing? I think so. His next move will tell if he is the true leader that he looks like he is. I would be impressed if he supported some of the home grown leadership like him; leadership that originates from the community. Already rumors are out that he stepped aside to assure the path for the incumbent who has an almost 60% absentee rate or the for the chosen candidate of the establishment who has turned out to be a Republican from Westchester. But I don’t believe he would do this. HE WOULD MOST LIKELY SUPPORT ONE OF THE OTHER TWO REMAINING CANDIDATES. By doing this he can show that true grass roots movements can change the balance of power; empowering the people of the West Bronx and in so doing encouraging grass roots political action throughout the entire Bronx.
ReplyDeleteams to be or if he is just a younger version of the same tired leadership we always get.
Thomas Tapia? Is that you speaking?
ReplyDeletecheck this out:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bronxtoons.blogspot.com
Anonymous if you are asking me if I support Tapia the answer is HELL YEA!
ReplyDeleteShe is the mother of four boys raised in this community just like Nuñez. She has fought for greater parental choice in school selection and won. She has labored for Democratic candidates for two decades always advocating for increase participation of new Americans in the democratic process. That is a compelling record when compared to Baez who has been absent almost %60 of the times in the City Council and Cabrera who is in fact a Conservative Republican from Westchester educated at Gerry Farwell's ultra Conservative Liberty University. If you ask me the choice for Nuñez is not that difficult. Join efforts with another home grown candidate like himself and show the outsiders that we are tires of them deciding the future of the West Bronx. Yudelka tells of how the West Bronx was one of the poorest communities in the country when she moved here twenty years ago. In 2009, twenty years later it is still one of the poorest. Maybe it’s because we have always been represented by outsiders whose self interest is greater than the interest of the community.
Manuel From Da Bx said...
ReplyDeletehe (Cabrera) is also a man of integrity and principle... YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING!!!!!!!!
Have you visited that church lately, you must be nuts.
From an article on him in this pub:
For the record, Cabrera says he supports civil unions for homosexuals but not legal marriage (same as Obama); he supports abortion only in cases of rape or violence (unlike Obama who is decidedly pro-choice): VERY SAD TO HEAR THIS FROM A REVEREND. IF HE CANT STAND FOR WHAT HE SAYS BELIEVES NOW WHAT ABOUT LATER. INTEGRITY OUT THE WINDOW.
From an article on him in this pub:
Cabrera says they moved in last July from Pelham, a suburburban town just northeast of the Bronx. THAT'S A STRAIGHT UP LIE. ASK HIS NEIGHBORS AND HOS CONGREGATION. INTEGRITY OUT THE WINDOW AGAIN.
If it’s not true Cabrera, set the record straight publicly. Stop hiding behind your anonymous blogging obviously blinded parishoners.
Heastie, you been had (Democrat, what a joke,LOL)
I'm looking at Tapia for this seat. Yorman needs to throw his support in that direction.
so in summary-----Cabrera supporters talk about integrity, leadership, being real etc...but in the integrity department he has blown it as he lied about where he lives, an interview he agreed to says he moved into his current home last year, but he knows, his supporters know and his neighbors know that he moved in this past May. He just changed his party lines to Democrat specifically to run in this district. Leadership of what??? What has he done? Protesting about the Fordaham Library does not cut it. Anyway he wasn't the first to voice dissent about the Library, it was Yorman who spoke first and spoke loudest. No one has heard of this guy Cabrera ever. Yudelka Tapia may have lost elections but at least she has run for office in the past...and by the way losing doesn't make a person unqualified. She has been honest about herself and her campaign thats more than Cabrera can say. And what about Mr. Cabrera's stance on gay marraige and a woman's right to choose. Why don't his supporters chime in on this? So, he has no experience, no past evidence of ever having done anything substantial in the community, and I don't want to hear about what he has done for the church, that's not the community, he is a liar about where he lives and a deceiving opportunist about his party affiliation. Can someone Tell me again why he should get my vote...loyalty is a great thing only when it's based on facts and principles that merit it. Cabrera hasn't shown these. Please dont post irrelelvant responses, it would be nice to hear rsponses to the statememts in this post
ReplyDeleteHeastie must be getting sicker by the day!