Candidate Profile 2023: Frei-Pearson For White Plains Common Council

WHITE PLAINS, NY — Voters in White Plains will have choices to make on Nov. 7 when they go to the polls.

Among them is picking three people to fill vacancies in the White Plains Common Council.

Democrat Jeremiah Frei-Pearson, 45, of White Plains, is on the ballot, along with incumbent Democrats Victoria F. Presser and Jenn Puja and Republicans Enrique C. Jinete and Charles Lederman.

Frei-Pearson runs a 20-person public interest plaintiffs’ law firm and said he’s been involved in politics for a long time. He was the straight allies coordinator for Marriage Equality New York and helped lead the fight for LGBTQ+ people to get the right to marry.

Locally, he chairs the mayor’s Sustainability Committee and previously chaired the mayor’s Committee for People with Disabilities. He ran unsuccessfully for State Assembly in 2020.

Campaign website: www.facebook.com/jvp & www.facebook.com/jfp23

Patch submitted questions to all candidates for the White Plains Common Council. Here are Frei-Pearson's responses.

Why are you seeking this office?

I am running to make White Plains more affordable, which includes providing more affordable housing so working people can afford to stay in this city, to make White Plains more sustainable and environmentally friendly, to provide good government and to make sure our city is safe and welcoming to all.

What are the major differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

I believe I am the only candidate who owns a small business in White Plains. I have used my small business to take on powerful entrenched interests on behalf of people who were being treated unfairly and to make their lives better. I also have significant experience with local government and working in our city, and I hope to use those skills to make life better for everyone in White Plains.

What is the single most pressing issue facing your constituents and what do you intend to do about it?

Affordable housing and affordable living is a pressing issue facing White Plains. It is not acceptable for teachers, firefighters, nurses and police officers who serve our community to be unable to afford to live in White Plains. On the council, I will work to make our city more affordable by (1) ensuring that new developments contain more affordable housing, (2) engaging in creative solutions to provide more affordable housing such as VAAP and (3) working to bring the cost of rent down for people and small businesses by advocating for a vacancy tax on large realty companies that choose to keep multiple properties vacant rather than charge affordable rent.

What other issues do you intend to address during your campaign?

My priorities are to make White Plains more affordable and sustainable, to provide good government and to make sure our city is safe and welcoming to all. Part of making sure that White Plains is welcoming to all is making sure that people feel safe in our downtown and that our downtown is thriving — that includes cleaning up City Center and ensuring that we still have a movie theater in White Plains.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

As a lawyer, I have repeatedly defeated powerful entrenched interests on behalf of working people. I have used the court system to fix broken nursing homes, to improve graduation rates for foster children and to recover record-setting amounts for underpaid workers. I will use the same tenacity to make life liveable for the people of White Plains. Although not an elected official, I have already helped move our city forward. For example, as chair of the Sustainability Committee, I recently helped secure a $1 million grant from the federal government to plant more trees in White Plains. I look forward to working on the council to secure resources for our city and to make sure that any new developments actually benefit the people of White Plains.

What is the best advice anyone ever gave you?

In law school, I had the honor of meeting Reverend Fred Shuttlesworth, who was Martin Luther King's top lieutenant in Birmingham, Alabama, during the 1960s. Reverend Shuttlesworth told me, with a twinkle in his eye, that "Love, compassion and justice are stronger than hate and fear." Twenty-some years later, that quote still inspires me.

Is there anything else you would like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

I would be honored to represent the people of White Plains. I am running to work for you. So if you have questions or suggestions, please email me at JeremiahFP4WP@gmail.com.

Editor's note: The candidate's responses have been lightly edited for style and clarity.