James G. Van Bramer (born August 19, 1969) is an American politician. A Democrat, who served in 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 ...

and represented the 26th district from 2010 to 2021, which includes Astoria,

Long Island City Long Island City (LIC) is a neighborhood within the New York City borough of Queens. It is bordered by Astoria to the north; the East River to the west; Sunnyside to the east; and Newtown Creek, which separates Queens from Greenpoint, Brook ...

, Sunnyside, and Woodside in

Queens Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...

. Van Bramer is a progressive who was one of the few members of the City Council to endorse

Cynthia Nixon Cynthia Ellen Nixon (born April 9, 1966) is an American actress, activist, and theater director. For her portrayal of Miranda Hobbes in the HBO series ''Sex and the City'' (1998–2004), she won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supportin ...

's campaign in the 2018 New York gubernatorial election.

Early life and education

Van Bramer was born and grew up in the

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

borough of

, the son of retired active union members. His father, William Van Bramer, was a lifelong member of Printers' and Pressman's Union Local 2. His mother, Elizabeth, helped support the family by taking a variety of jobs in their neighborhood. She was a member of Local 1893 of the International Brotherhood of Painters. Van Bramer graduated from

William Cullen Bryant High School William Cullen Bryant High School, or William C. Bryant High School, and W.C. Bryant High School, or Bryant High School for short, is a secondary school in Queens, New York City, United States serving grades 9 through 12. Name The school is na ...

. In 1994, he graduated from St. Johns University.

Career

Before joining the City Council, Van Bramer served as the Chief External Affairs Officer of the Queens Public Library. In this capacity, he was the library's link between community members and government. He worked as a reporter for Lesbian and Gay New York (now '' Gay City News'') a community newspaper, where he brought attention to the AIDS epidemic and bias/hate crimes. He represents his neighborhood and the 37th Assembly District on the New York State Democratic Committee. In September 2007, he was named one of ''

City & State ''City & State'' is a political journalism organization based in New York City. The company publishes a weekly magazine covering politics and government in New York City and New York State that is distributed to New York State legislators, co ...

s "40 under 40" for being a young influential member of New York City politics. Van Bramer currently lives in Sunnyside Gardens with his husband, Dan Hendrick. They married on July 28, 2012. Van Bramer is one of four openly LGBTQ+ members of the New York City Council, alongside Corey Johnson, Daniel Dromm and Carlos Menchaca.

New York City Council

Van Bramer was first elected to the

to represent the 26th district on November 3, 2009. He was re-elected in 2013. On January 22, 2014, Van Bramer was chosen to be the New York City Council's Majority Leader, the second-most powerful position in the body. He was also named to serve as co-chair of a budget negotiating team set up by Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito. He was elected to a third 4-year term on November 7, 2017, and reappointed to the budget negotiating team by Speaker Corey Johnson. Van Bramer was appointed to chair the council's Cultural Affairs, Libraries and International Relations Committee. He has served as chair of this committee throughout his tenure as a council member.

References

External links

Official website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Van Bramer, Jimmy 1969 births Living people American politicians of Dutch descent Candidates in the 2021 United States elections New York City Council members New York (state) Democrats American LGBTQ city council members LGBTQ people from New York (state) Politicians from Queens, New York St. John's University (New York City) alumni American gay politicians

Early life and education

Career

New York City Council

See also

References

External links