The City Council Will Look More Like New York. Will It Have Clout?

The Council, which is poised to have a majority of women and its highest number of L.G.B.T.Q. New Yorkers, will be one of the most progressive in history.

New York City, a global immigration hub, has never had a person of South Asian descent on the City Council. No openly gay Black woman has ever sat among its 51 lawmakers, even as the city has become a beacon for L.G.B.T.Q. people of color. And though women made gains in politics nationwide in the 21st century, their numbers on the City Council actually dropped over the last two decades. But now, with the Council facing significant turnover because of term limits and retirements, New York’s legislative body is poised to be one of the most progressive in the city’s history, with a diversity that mirrors the city it represents. “Across the board, you were seeing a group of candidates that more clearly reflected the people that needed to be represented,” said Tiffany Cabán, a queer Latina and progressive candidate who won her Council primary in Queens. “That’s really huge, and I think that drove a lot of the success.”