Originally Posted: February 18, 2022
By: Nelson A King
Office of the Governor of New York/File
Caribbean American New York State Lieutenant Governor, Brian Benjamin on Thursday accepted the nomination of the New York State Democratic Party for lieutenant governor.
The State Party voted unanimously at the New York State Democratic Convention, at the Sheridan Hotel in midtown Manhattan, to nominate Benjamin, 44, the son of a Guyanese mother and Jamaican father, as the party’s choice for lieutenant governor in this year’s election.
“I am honored to be endorsed by the New York State Democratic Party as their choice for Lieutenant Governor,” Benjamin, who was sworn-in in September as second-in-command to newly-installed New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, told Caribbean Life afterwards.
“I am looking forward to continuing to work with Governor Kathy Hochul and the rest of our unified ticket to get New York back on track,” continued Benjamin, who previously served as the New York State Senator for District 30, which encompasses Harlem, East Harlem and the Upper West Side in Manhattan.
During his swearing-in ceremony last September, after Hochul, 62, tapped him as lieutenant governor, Benjamin thanked Hochul “for putting your trust in me.
“New York State, I will do everything I can to make sure that those who are living at the margins, those who are struggling, those who are overlooked will have a seat at the table,” he said. “And we will make sure that there’s fairness, accountability and good practical decision-making that governs our activities.
“And thank you so much, Gov. Hochul, for this opportunity to serve,” Benjamin added. “I will not let you down. New York State, I will not let you down, either.”
Hochul said at the time that she had found “a person who knows what it’s like to struggle, to work hard, to make something of his life, and to now return his service to the community.
“That is, my friends, the American dream, how someone who started out with little rose to where he is today, but now turns back and doesn’t think about himself,” she said.
“He thinks about how he can serve not just his Senatorial district, but now he’ll be helping me serve 20 million New Yorkers,” the governor added. “It’s an extraordinary responsibility. I wouldn’t have asked you if I didn’t think you’re up for the task. And I know you are.”
Source: Guyanese Online
