Errol T. Louis (born August 24, 1962) is a New York City journalist and television show host. He has unsuccessfully run for office several times.

Early life

Louis was born in

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and Central Park North on the south. The greater ...

and raised in

New Rochelle, New York New Rochelle ( ; in ) is a Political subdivisions of New York State#City, city in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County, New York (state), New York, United States. It is a suburb of New York City, located approximately from Midtow ...

, by his father, Edward J. Louis, a retired New York City police officer, and his mother, Tomi (Hawkins) Louis, a bookkeeper. He received a B.A. in government from

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...

, an M.A. in political science from

Yale Yale University is a private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, and one of the nine colonial colleges ch ...

, and a J.D. from

Brooklyn Law School Brooklyn Law School (BLS) is a Private university, private law school in New York City. Founded in 1901, it has approximately 1,100 students. Brooklyn Law School's faculty includes 60 full-time faculty, 15 emeriti faculty, and adjunct faculty. ...

Career

Finance and teaching

Louis co-founded the Central Brooklyn Federal Credit Union with Mark Winston Griffith in the spring of 1993. The two were known as "the hip-hop bankers". Louis taught urban studies at

Pratt Institute Pratt Institute is a private university with its main campus in Brooklyn, New York. It has an additional campus in Manhattan and an extension campus in Utica, New York at the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute. The institute was founded in 18 ...

Politics

On September 9, 1997, Louis ran in the Democratic primary for

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 ...

District 35 against incumbent Mary Pinkett and police officer James E. Davis. Louis had charged Pinkett with being absent in the community, and he was endorsed by Congressman

Major Owens Major Robert Odell Owens (June 28, 1936 – October 21, 2013) was an American politician and librarian who served in the United States House of Representatives from 1983 to 2007, representing the New York's 11th and then 12th congressional distri ...

, State Senator Velmanette Montgomery, and Assemblyman Roger L. Green. Louis lost to Pinkett with 27.82% of the vote, but then ran against Pinkett again in the November 4, 1997, general election on the

Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice. Green party platforms typically embrace Social democracy, social democratic economic policies and fo ...

line, with Davis on the Conservative Party and

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

lines. Louis was defeated with 8.54% of the vote. Louis declared his candidacy in the 2001 Democratic primary for the same City Council seat, but he had dropped out of the race by August 2001.

Journalism

Louis was an associate editor of ''

The New York Sun ''The New York Sun'' is an American Conservatism in the United States, conservative Online newspaper, news website and former newspaper based in Manhattan, Manhattan, New York. From 2009 to 2021, it operated as an (occasional and erratic) onlin ...

''. He later joined the New York '' Daily News'' in 2004 and for many years wrote a column, "Commerce and Community", for '' Our Time Press'', which is published weekly and based in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn. Louis also served on the

editorial board The editorial board is a group of editors, writers, and other people who are charged with implementing a publication's approach to editorials and other opinion pieces. The editorials published normally represent the views or goals of the publicat ...

. On June 23, 2008, Louis became host of the ''Morning Show'', a three-hour talk program on radio station

WWRL WWRL (1600 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station licensed to New York, New York, owned by iHeartMedia, Inc. The station airs an all-news radio format as an network affiliate, affiliate of the Black Information Network (BIN). Founded in 1926, WW ...

; in 2009 he was succeeded by Mark Riley. In November 2010 ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture publication based in Greenwich Village, New York City, known for being the country's first Alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, ...

'' named him the city's best newspaper columnist and radio show host. Louis joined NY1 in November 2010 as political anchor and the host of '' Inside City Hall'', a program about New York City politics that airs nightly. He is the Director of the Urban Reporting program at the

City University of New York The City University of New York (CUNY, pronounced , ) is the Public university, public university system of Education in New York City, New York City. It is the largest urban university system in the United States, comprising 25 campuses: eleven ...

's Graduate School of Journalism. He is also a

CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...

contributor and has made frequent appearances on ''

Lou Dobbs Tonight ''Lou Dobbs Tonight'' is an American political and financial talk program that was hosted by Lou Dobbs. The program initially aired on CNN from its launch under the title ''Moneyline'', as its main financial news program. The program later shift ...

'' and other CNN news programs. In 1996 Louis was named by ''

New York Magazine ''New York'' is an American biweekly magazine concerned with life, culture, politics, and style generally, with a particular emphasis on New York City. Founded by Clay Felker and Milton Glaser in 1968 as a competitor to ''The New Yorker'' a ...

'' as one of "10 New Yorkers Making a Difference", "with energy, vision and independent thinking."

Personal life

Louis lives in

Crown Heights, Brooklyn Crown Heights is a neighborhood in the central portion of the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn. Crown Heights is bounded by Washington Avenue to the west, Atlantic Avenue (New York City), Atlantic Avenue to the north, ...

, with his wife, Juanita Scarlett a lobbyist with the firm Bolton-St. John's, and their son.

Electoral history

Notes

External links

Inside City Hall website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Louis, Errol 1962 births Living people American newspaper editors People from Harlem Brooklyn Law School alumni Harvard University alumni New York (state) Democrats Politicians from Manhattan Yale University alumni Television personalities from New Rochelle, New York Journalists from New York (state) 20th-century American journalists American male journalists Charles H. Revson Foundation 20th-century New York (state) politicians