Member of ‘Exonerated Five’ wins primary race
council member, dropped out of the race in May but stayed on the ballot.
Salaam declared victory on election night with his vote tally barely exceeding 50%, although an unknown number of absentee ballots had yet to be counted. But his lead over Dickens, his nearest competitor, seemed insurmountable, and she and Taylor conceded. New York City is still tabulating late-arriving mail ballots that could potentially push him back above the 50% threshold, in which case he will have won without the benefit of ranked-choice voting tallies.
While all three candidates focused on promoting affordable housing, controlling gentrification and easing poverty in Harlem, Salaam capitalized on his celebrity in neighborhoods that consider the Central Park Five — now the Exonerated Five — to be living symbols of the injustices faced by the Black and Latino residents who make up about 75% of the district’s population.
“He comes from the neighborhood, and he was incarcerated, then turned himself around,” voter Carnation France said. “He’s trying to do something for the people.”
Salaam’s lack of experience in public office might have worked in his favor, according to Amani Onyioha, a partner at Sole Strategies, which ran phone banks and engaged residents on Salaam’s behalf.
“In a time like this, when people are looking for a hero, they’re looking for somebody who can relate to them,” Onyioha said. “I think people saw him as a survivor.”
Salaam moved to Georgia shortly after he was released and became an activist, motivational speaker, author and poet. He returned only in December to launch his campaign.
Salaam was 15 when he was arrested along with Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson, Raymond Santana and Korey Wise, who served between five and 12 years in prison before prosecutors agreed to reexamine the case. DNA evidence and a confession ultimately linked a serial rapist and murderer to the attack. Their convictions were vacated in 2002.