Mayor Bill DeBlasio Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office
June 18, 2020 By Christian Murray
Two resolutions were introduced before the city council Thursday calling for the governor to remove Mayor Bill de Blasio from office.
Council Member Eric Ulrich, a Queens Republican, introduced a resolution seeking the mayor’s ouster for allegedly not keeping the city safe during recent protests.
Meanwhile, Carlos Menchaca, a Brooklyn progressive, introduced a similar no-confidence resolution but on far different grounds. He alleges that the mayor failed to hold the police accountable for acts of brutality.
The legislation introduced by the council members are resolutions—as opposed to bills—and merely call on Gov. Andrew Cuomo to act. The governor can remove the mayor for failing to protect the public in accordance with section 33 of the Public Officers Law and Section 9 of the charter.
In the unlikely event that Cuomo removes the mayor, Jumaane Williams, the public advocate, would become the interim mayor for the remainder of de Blasio’s term.
Ulrich is calling for the mayor’s removal for failing to keep New Yorkers safe.
“Mayor de Blasio has not effectively maintained public order during this period of social unrest,” the resolution reads, adding that it has resulted in “the looting and destruction of businesses large and small and chaos on the streets for many days.”
Ulrich said that the mayor has shown a further lack of judgment in his recent decision to cut the budget of the NYPD. He said that it could lead to the further erosion of public order.
Menchaca’s resolution, however, argues that de Basio has failed to hold law enforcement officials accountable after multiple incidents of police brutality—including many documented incidents against peaceful protesters in recent weeks. He says that the mayor has failed to protect the public from police abuses.
“Mayor de Blasio failed to immediately and unequivocally acknowledge and condemn the use of unnecessary aggression and violence against peaceful protesters, instead consistently praising the performance of the NYPD overall,” Menchaca’s resolution reads.
