Cordell Cleare (born December 5, 1965) is an American activist and politician from Harlem,

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. A member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

, she has been politically active in Harlem since the late 1990s and is currently the state-senator for

New York's 30th State Senate district New York's 30th State Senate district is one of 63 districts in the New York State Senate. It has been represented by Democrat Cordell Cleare since 2021. Geography District 30 is primarily based in Harlem in northern Manhattan, but also includes ...

Early life

Cordell Cleare was raised 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 (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...

, where her family lived for four generations. She attended and graduated from

Brooklyn Technical High School Brooklyn Technical High School, commonly called Brooklyn Tech and administratively designated High School 430, is an elite public high school in New York City that specializes in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. It is one of th ...

then attended and graduated from

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in Manhattan.

Career

Cleare worked for over 18 years for New York State Senator Bill Perkins and served as his Chief of Staff for several years. Cleare has served on the District #3 Community Education Council, and was a Community School Board member for six years. In 2008, Cleare campaigned for then-Senator

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's presidential run. In 2012, she supported Obama's run for re-election, and was a delegate to the

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. Cleare ran for

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to represent District 9 in 2017, losing to her old boss Perkins. She ran again for that seat in 2021, with both her and Perkins losing to Kristin Richardson Jordan. On September 25, 2021, Cleare was selected by the Manhattan Democratic Committee to be the Democratic nominee in a special election for

. The district became vacant when incumbent

Brian Benjamin Brian A. Benjamin is an American politician and businessman who was lieutenant governor of New York from September 2021 until his resignation on April 12, 2022. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously represented the 30th district in th ...

was appointed

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. However, it is so heavily Democratic that Cleare was effectively chosen as its next state senator. The special election occurred on November 2, 2021, and she won with over 88% of the vote. In March 2022, Congress member

Carolyn Maloney Carolyn Jane Maloney (née Bosher, February 19, 1946) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for since 2013, and for from 1993 to 2013. The district includes most of Manhattan's East Side, Astoria and Long Island City i ...

endorsed State Senator Cleare for reelection.

Activism

Cleare was a tenant organizer and then the Chair of the New York City Coalition to End Lead Poisoning. She became involved with the organization after her two-year-old son was diagnosed with lead poisoning, an issue she called “completely preventable.” Cleare raised awareness about lead poisoning through workshops at schools and community centres, health fairs, and government officials. In 1997, Cleare was awarded the

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’s eleventh annual Brooke Russell Astor Award for her activism work, which included a $10,000 prize. Cleare’s advocacy helped create the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Bill that passed in the New York City Council in 2004. Cleare was endorsed by the New York League of Conservation Voters during the 2021 New York City Council election. Cleare’s platform for her state senate election included the discontinuation of fossil fuels for the Metropolitan Transit Authority and the protection of green spaces.

Awards

* 1997: Brooke Russell Astor Award - Co-chair of the New York City Coalition to End Lead Poisoning

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cleare, Cordell People from Harlem Living people Education activists American anti-racism activists American anti-poverty advocates Activists for African-American civil rights American women's rights activists American community activists Women civil rights activists 21st-century African-American people 1965 births 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians African-American women in politics African-American state legislators in New York (state) Democratic Party New York (state) state senators