How Mamdani Gets His Rent Freeze

"On the last day of the year, Eric Adams's attempt to stack the Rent Guidelines Board fell apart: Both of his picks for one of the public-member seats dropped out. With that seat empty and four additional vacancies to fill in the coming year, Zohran Mamdani is in a much better position to make good on his campaign promise to freeze the rent for rent-stabilized tenants across the city."

"The system that governs rent stabilization is sort of byzantine, but the basics are as follows: The board is composed of five public members, two tenant members, and two landlord members, all appointed by the mayor. The last two groups usually cancel each other out when it comes to voting to raise or maintain rents, so it's the five public members who generally matter most when setting the annual rate of increase."

"Meanwhile, Adams's remaining appointees include economist Alex Armlovich and NYU finance professor Arpit Gupta as public members, Legal Services NYC's Sagar Sharma as a tenant member, and lawyer Christina Smyth as a landlord member whose firm represents owners (and has sued tenants for rent they don't actually owe). Mamdani says he will make his appointments soon. And while he doesn't control the vote himself, he will almost certainly choose members he believes are aligned with his agenda."

On the last day of the year Eric Adams's attempt to stack the Rent Guidelines Board failed when both of his picks for a public-member seat dropped out. That vacancy and four other upcoming vacancies give Zohran Mamdani a stronger position to deliver on a campaign promise to freeze rent for rent-stabilized tenants citywide. The nine-member board includes five public members, two tenant members, and two landlord members appointed by the mayor, with the public members usually deciding annual increases. Mamdani is poised to appoint three public members, a tenant member, and a landlord member. Adams's remaining appointees include Alex Armlovich, Arpit Gupta, Sagar Sharma, and Christina Smyth. Analysts and tenant organizers expect few hurdles unless a nominee acts unexpectedly.

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