Eric Dinowitz (born November 21, 1985) is an American teacher and politician. Dinowitz represents the 11th district of the

New York City Council The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of New York City in the United States. It has 51 members from 51 council districts throughout the five boroughs. The council serves as a check against the mayor in a mayor-council government mod ...

. Dinowitz is a registered

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

. Dinowitz was elected in a

special election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...

held on March 23, 2021, after the resignation of Andrew Cohen, who was elected to the New York Supreme Court. Dinowitz assumed office on April 15, 2021 after weeks of the

New York City Board of Elections The Board of Elections in the City of New York (NYCBOE) conducts New York elections within New York City, United States. It is an administrative body of ten Commissioners, two from each borough upon recommendation by both political parties and th ...

counting

ranked-choice voting Ranked-choice voting may be used as a synonym for: * Ranked voting, a term used for any voting system in which voters are asked to rank candidates in order of preference * Instant-runoff voting (IRV), a specific ranked voting system with single-wi ...

ballots which were instituted for municipal elections beginning in 2021. The 11th district includes Bedford Park,

Kingsbridge Kingsbridge is a market town in the South Hams district of Devon, England, with a population of 6,116 at the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 census. Two electoral wards bear the name of ''Kingsbridge'' (East & North). Their combined population ...

, Norwood, Riverdale,

Van Cortlandt Village Van Cortlandt Village is a subsection of the Kingsbridge neighborhood in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The neighborhood is part of Bronx Community Board 8. Named after Van Cortlandt Park, it is bordered by the Major Deegan Expressway ...

Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 109,766 in the 2021 census, up from 99,251 in the 2011 census. The city is the administrative centre of the wider Metropolit ...

, and Woodlawn Heights in

The Bronx The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

Life and career

Dinowitz was born in 1985 to

New York State Assemblyman The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Assembl ...

Jeffrey Dinowitz Jeffrey Dinowitz (born December 3, 1954) is an American politician who represents District 81 in the New York State Assembly, which comprises Kingsbridge, Marble Hill, Norwood, Riverdale, Van Cortlandt Village, Wakefield, and Woodlawn Heights. ...

and Sylvia Gottlieb in the Northwestern

Bronx The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

. He graduated from the

Bronx High School of Science The Bronx High School of Science is a State school, public Specialized high schools in New York City, specialized high school in the Bronx in New York City. It is operated by the New York City Department of Education. Admission to Bronx Science ...

and received his

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

from Binghamton University, SUNY, followed by a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

in education from Hunter College, CUNY. Dinowitz spent fifteen years as a special education classroom teacher in the

New York City Public Schools The New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE) is the department of the government of New York City that manages the city's public school system. The City School District of the City of New York (more commonly known as New York City Publ ...

. As a member the

United Federation of Teachers The United Federation of Teachers (UFT) is the labor union that represents most teachers in New York City public schools. , there were about 118,000 in-service teachers and nearly 30,000 paraprofessional educators in the union, as well as about ...

, he served as a chapter leader. Eric was the Democratic District Leader for New York's 81st Assembly District and has also served as the Aging Committee Chair of the Bronx Community Board 8. In 2021, Dinowitz was named to the ''City & State'''s Labor ''40 Under 40'' list.

New York City Council

2025 Election Year * In 2025, Dinowitz faced his first primary challenger since 2021. Danielle Herbert-Guggenheim announced her candidacy on December 8th. The primary was held on June 24, 2025; Dinowitz won, with challenger Herbert-Guggenheim claiming 27.9% of the vote. 2024 Term * In 2024, Dinowitz was appointed to the following

committees: ** Chair of the Committee on Veterans ** Committee on Standards and Ethics ** Committee on Civil Service and Labor ** Committee on Education ** Committee on Higher Education ** Committee on Committee on Housing and Buildings ** Subcommittee on Senior Centers and Food Insecurity 2021 Term * In 2021, Dinowitz was appointed to the following

committees: ** Chair of the Committee on Veterans ** Committee on Aging ** Committee on Civil Service and Labor ** Committee on Education ** Committee on Mental Health, Disabilities, and Addictions ** Committee on Oversight and Investigations ** Committee on Parks and Recreation ** Committee on Small Business Dinowitz was also appointed Chairman of the New York City Council Jewish Caucus.

Music

Dinowitz is a member of New York-based Jewish

A cappella Music performed a cappella ( , , ; ), less commonly spelled acapella in English, is music performed by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Rena ...

group Six13, who have performed worldwide, as well as making an appearance at the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...

Hanukkah Party in 2016, hosted by President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

Personal life

Eric is married to Tamar Dinowitz. They have twin sons, Alex and Jesse.

Electoral history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dinowitz, Eric 1985 births 21st-century American Jews 21st-century New York (state) politicians Jewish American people in New York City politics Living people New York (state) Democrats New York City Council members Politicians from the Bronx