City Councilman Rafael Salamanca has officially decided to run against Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson in next year’s Democratic primary — marking the second election cycle in a row that he’s mounting a bid for the post.
In an exclusive campaign announcement interview with the Daily News Monday, Salamanca, who’s term-limited from his Council seat at the end of 2025, said he came to the decision to officially throw his hat into the BP race ring because he wants to continue “making a chance in the community.”
He also slammed Gibson for what he sees as a lack of effort from her to address a spate of quality of life concerns in the Bronx.
“I don’t like what I’m seeing in the borough of the Bronx. The streets are dirty, crime is up, folks are scared,” said Salamanca. “The current administration in Borough Hall lacks a comprehensive plan to create true affordable housing and low-income home ownership. I think that this current administration has lacked a comprehensive plan to work with law enforcement to help us understand how to make the borough safer, because regardless of what the numbers the mayor gives out say, the perception is that we’re not safe.”
Of himself, Salamanca added: “I bring a different level of expertise as a true Bronxite about what is actually happening in our borough and what needs to happen in our borough.”
Salamanca, who represents a Council district that includes Hunts Point, Morrisania and East Tremont, has already spent months raising money for a campaign against Gibson. However, up until now, he has couched the campaign moves as “exploratory.”
Gibson used to serve in the Council with Salamanca, also representing a section of the Bronx, until she was elected the borough’s BP in 2021. She faced off against Salamanca in the 2021 race, too, but he dropped out before election day to run for reelection for his 17th Council District instead.
In terms of fundraising, Salamanca already holds a major edge over Gibson for the 2025 race. As of the latest campaign finance filings, he sat on a war chest of more than $440,000, most of it transferred over from his Council account, while Gibson reported just over $53,000 in cash on hand.
A spokeswoman for Gibson, the first female and African-American borough president in Bronx history, didn’t return a request for comment on Salamanca’s official entry into the race.
In his interview with The News, Salamanca said his experience as chairman of the Council’s Land Use Committee makes him particularly qualified to take on the responsibility of Bronx borough president. Land use is one of the few areas where the city’s five BPs still hold significant powers, especially as it relates to the so-called Uniform Land Use Review Procedure, which must be undertaken for major zoning changes.
“I have helped get through thousands of units of housing, not just in the Bronx, but across the city,” Salamanca said of his work as Land Use chair.
Salamanca and Gibson are currently the only candidates running for Bronx BP.