Deborah Rose (born August 21, 1951) is a New York City politician. She was the Council member for the 49th district of the New York City Council. She is a Democrat and was the first African American elected to higher office from Staten Island.

Debi Rose
Member of the New York City Council
from the 49th District
In office
January 1, 2010 – December 31, 2021
Preceded byKenneth Mitchell
Succeeded byKamillah Hanks
Personal details
Born (1951-08-21) August 21, 1951 (age 73)
Political partyDemocratic
Alma materHofstra University (BA)
WebsiteCampaign website
Official website

The district includes the neighborhoods of Arlington, Bloomfield, Bull's Head, Castleton Corners, Clifton, Concord, Emerson Hill, Fort Wadsworth, Graniteville, Grymes Hill, Howland Hook, Mariners Harbor, New Brighton, Park Hill, Port Ivory, Port Richmond, Randall Manor, Rosebank, Shore Acres, Silver Lake, St. George, Stapleton, Todt Hill, Tompkinsville, West Brighton, Westerleigh and Willowbrook on Staten Island.

Life and career

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Rose, a native Staten Islander, was born on August 21, 1951, and grew up in the West New Brighton neighborhood on the North Shore of Staten Island. One of three children, her parents were the late Louis Carrington, a descendant of Sandy Ground settlers,[1] and the late Muriel Billups, a founder of the Staten Island chapter of the National Council of Negro Women.[2] Her maternal grandparents owned one of two black-owned funeral homes on Staten Island, and were community leaders.[3]

She is a graduate of Port Richmond High School, where she was a member of the Staten Island's NAACP youth group and the Vice President of her senior class. She is also a graduate of Hofstra University.[3] She currently resides in Arlington, Staten Island.

Prior to running for the city council seat, she spent several years advocating on school funding issues and health issues. She was elected in 1996 to the now-defunct New York City Board of Education. She has been a member of the Staten Island Mental Health Society and the American Cancer Society - Women's Breast Partnership. She established the Staten Island Black Women's Health Initiative.[4][5]

New York City Council

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In the September 2009 Democratic primary, Rose defeated incumbent Kenneth Mitchell by 16 percentage points.[6] She defeated Mitchell (Conservative Party of New York) and Timothy Kuhn (Republican Party) by a wide margin in the November 2009 general election. She easily was re-elected in 2013. Rose currently serves as the chairperson of the New York City Council Committee on Civil Rights.[7]

Rose was the subject of a lawsuit filed by five Staten Island voters. The voters alleged that Rose was underbilled for services provided by Data and Field Services, a political company created by the Working Families Party. DFS provides services such as phone banking, polling and get-out-the-vote efforts. Rose should have paid DFS $100,000, but the lawsuit alleged that her campaign was underbilled because she was endorsed by the Working Families Party, a violation of election laws.[8] Rose's campaign settled by paying DFS $8,525, and did not have to acknowledge any wrongdoing on the behalf of her campaign or DFS.[9]

Election history
Location Year Election Results
NYC Council
District 49
2001 Democratic Michael McMahon 38.90%
Debi Rose 37.56%
Jon R. Del Giorno 23.54%
NYC Council
District 49
2001 General Michael McMahon (D) 50.11%
Joseph Cammarata (R) 34.36%
Debi Rose (Liberal) 15.14%
Susan Roecker (Green) .39%
NYC Council
District 49
2009 Special Kenneth Mitchell (D) 40.27%
Debi Rose (D) 37.21%
Tony Baker (D) 7.57%
John Tabacco (I) 6.80%
Paul Saryian (I) 5.05%
Don Pagano (D) 3.12%
NYC Council
District 49
2009 Democratic √ Debi Rose 54.48%
Kenneth Mitchell 39.63%
Rajiv Gowda 5.89%
NYC Council
District 49
2009 General √ Debi Rose (D) 57.99%
Kenneth Mitchell (Conservative) 25.94%
Timothy K. Kuhn (R) 16.06%
NYC Council
District 49
2013 General √ Debi Rose (D) 69.61%
Mark Macron (R) 30.26%
NYC Council
District 34
2017 Democratic Primary √ Debi Rose 69.39%
Kamillah Hanks 30.11%
NYC Council
District 34
2017 General √ Debi Rose (D) 59.19%
Mike Penrose (R) 35.48%
Kamillah Hanks (Reform) 5.17%

References

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  1. ^ "Louis Carrington, 84". SILive.com. 16 December 2012. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  2. ^ "Muriel Billups-Carrington, 84". SILive.com. 28 February 2013. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  3. ^ a b "Council candidate's historic run, defined by passion". SILive.com. 4 October 2009. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  4. ^ [1][dead link]
  5. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2009-04-25. Retrieved 2009-11-04.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  6. ^ Staten Island Advance/Anthony DePrimo (16 September 2009). "Debi Rose defeats Mitchell in Democratic primary for North Shore Council seat". SILive.com. Retrieved 2014-08-05.
  7. ^ Benjamin, Elizabeth (March 3, 2010). "Seabrook's loss is Debi Rose's gain". New York Daily News. Archived from the original on March 9, 2010. Retrieved July 2, 2017.
  8. ^ Goldenberg, Sally (2009-10-27). "Working Families 'scam' to boost pals | New York Post". Nypost.com. Retrieved 2014-08-05.
  9. ^ Advance file photo (2010-02-23). "Debi Rose camp agrees to pay to settle campaign lawsuit". SILive.com. Retrieved 2014-08-05.
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Political offices
Preceded by New York City Council, 49th district
2010–2022
Succeeded by