Julia Menin is the Speaker of the New York City Council.

Julia Menin is the Speaker of the New York City Council.
In January 2026, Julia Menin was elected Speaker of the New York City Council—a landmark and symbolic event for the city she has served for more than two decades.
As a journalist, I met Julia Menin many times, and each time she left a remarkable impression on me—her modesty, dignity, and a remarkably warm, sincere smile that betrayed not a political veneer but a real person. I first met her at the Graduate School of Journalism, where she openly and without pathos said that her family knew what the Holocaust was. This personal story has forever become part of her public life.
Later, I met Julia at numerous press conferences during the pandemic, at Chamber of Commerce events, and at official meetings—and each time, she recognized me and approached me, a rarity for a politician of her stature. And at the City Council, she could often be seen at rallies and on the steps outside the building.
I especially remember her inauguration in 2022, when Julia Menin was elected to the City Council by a majority vote and sworn in by Senator Chuck Schumer. It was an unusually warm ceremony.
On stage, she stood surrounded by her family, holding her young daughter, her husband Bruce and three sons nearby, and surrounded by colleagues and allies. A woman, a mother of four, a leader, confidently bearing responsibility before a huge city, in a light dress and holding a child in her arms!
I thought then that her mother and grandmother—Hungarian refugees and Holocaust survivors—would have been thrilled to witness this moment. Sadly, they didn't live to see it. Her father, however, was in the audience, sitting on the bench, and I think he felt incredible pride when, after the inauguration, Julia came down to the hall, approached him, and kissed him. He was happy; he was able to see how much his brilliant daughter had done for New York and achieved in the United States.
During the inauguration, representatives of three New York City religions—a rabbi, an imam, and a pastor—spoke, symbolically highlighting Julia Menin's ability to unite people of different faiths and cultures.
A special place in her biography is the COVID-19 pandemic, when she led the 2020 Census—at the city's most challenging moment. Thanks to her leadership, New York City achieved the best results in the country, bringing trillions of dollars in federal funding to the city for education, healthcare, transportation, and public housing. She served as commissioner of various agencies, including Consumer Affairs, Media, Entertainment, and the Census.
Many speakers—from former Mayor Eric Adams to Attorney General Letitia James—highlighted her unique organizational skills, intellect, and incredible work ethic. Residents of NYCHA subsidized apartments also spoke, expressing their honor to convey greetings from residents of subsidized buildings.
Letitia James compared Julia Menin to Einstein, praising her analytical mind and ability to find precise solutions to improve people's lives. Congressman Jerrold Nadler spoke of her leadership 20 years ago, during the post-9/11 recovery of Lower Manhattan, when she helped save over 600 small businesses, courageously fought against religious hatred and bigotry, worked on a project to obtain compensation for disaster relief workers, spoke out against anti-Semitism, and served as chair of Lower Manhattan Community Council #1.
Chuck Schumer said something that perhaps best describes Julia Menin: "Her strength is that she is always thinking about how to make people and the city better."
New York City is truly fortunate to have such a leader on its city council.
Wife, mother, community leader, intellectual, strategist and a person with a big heart – Julia Menin has much to give to the city.
We celebrate today not only her election at such a difficult time for the city, but also the future of New York that includes women like her.
Marina Lagunova