It’s the kind of phrase that would make his grandmother “roll over in her grave” if she knew that he ran on a curse word. But to Justin Sanchez, candidate for District 17 City Council, it’s more than a catchy line – it’s a declaration of intent.
“I didn’t come in saying what the Bronx needs. I knocked on doors, asked, and listened. And everyone said the same thing: clean the damn streets,” Sanchez is running to represent New York City’s 17th Council District, a stretch of the South Bronx that includes Hunts Point, Longwood, and Morrisania.
On Nov. 4, New Yorkers aren’t just choosing a mayor, they’re choosing the leaders who shape daily life in their neighborhoods. From sanitation schedules to youth program funding, local elections decide where your tax dollars go and influence your child’s education, your community’s safety, and development.
Yet, while the mayoral race between Andrew Cuomo, Zohran Mamdani and Curtis Sliwa dominates headlines, turnout and attention for City Council races often lags, leaving communities like the South Bronx fighting for a voice in decisions that impact their daily life.
Before launching his campaign, Sanchez, who previously served as chief of staff to Senator Nathalia Fernandez, spent months talking with residents about what they wanted from their city government. His approach was simple: ask questions first, develop a platform later.
Born and raised in the South Bronx, Sanchez grew up the son of a teenage mother and the grandson of Dominican and Puerto Rican immigrants who instilled in him a deep sense of service.
A graduate of the CUNY School of Labor & Urban Studies and New York University, Sanchez began his career as a canvasser for the Working Families Party and worked his way up to recruitment director, then chief of staff to Senator Fernandez. Now, he’s running for City Council on a platform of community accountability, public safety and cleaning the streets.
“One of the things that annoys me most,” Sanchez added, “is when folks come into the community and tell you what you need instead of listening. I wanted to show that this would be a different kind of leadership. I’m not here to tell you what you need. I’m here to listen, respond, and find solutions to improve our collective lives.”
Sanchez acknowledged that what his constituents and he have in common are their shared experiences from living in the same neighborhood, “What do you want? What do you want to see? And that’s how we came up with ‘clean the damn streets.’”
Sanchez’s campaign message, direct and honest, struck a chord with residents like Norma Saunders, 57, who’s lived in the South Bronx her entire life. Saunders is the Family Enrichment Center director, the tenant association president for Bronx River Houses, and the female district leader for the 85th Assembly District. She’s seen elected officials come and go, but says something about Sanchez feels different.
“He’s already out here doing what he said he would. He said he’s got to clean up the Bronx,” Saunders said. “Every weekend, he has people out there in the district cleaning up the Bronx. He’s hiring young people to teach them the value of their community. That’s what we need, leaders who cater to the community more than politics.”
For Saunders, the Bronx’s challenges are both visible and personal – rising crime, pollution, a lack of resources for families and youth. But her hope hasn’t dimmed.
“I try to teach our young people to vote in every election. Voting is definitely a priority and a right,” she said.“I tell them the most important elections are our local ones. That’s where you can actually talk to these people face to face, tell them what’s going on in your community, and see real change.”
Grassroots canvassing is the backbone of the Justin Sanchez campaign. Throughout the summer and fall, his team has been knocking on doors, listening, explaining and re-engaging residents who have lost faith in politics.
“I’m here to make sure that we’re understanding everything that’s happening, what’s going on, and that our residents have a say,” Sanchez said. “If we’re not at the table, we can very well be on the menu.”
Sayief Leshaw, Sanchez’s campaign manager, says their outreach has been unprecedented. “In total, we did 100,000 knocks in a district of 87,000 registered voters,” he added. “Voters appreciated the approach, going door to door with a survey to figure out the most pressing issues. The top issues were public safety, addressing the opioid crisis/drug hubs, sanitation, and education/youth programs. There had never been a comprehensive field plan executed in the Bronx before. My door had never been knocked on.”
Beyond data collection, Sanchez’s campaign became a crash course in civic engagement. “Everyone’s just like, oh, the mayor, the mayor — yes, the mayor. The city council just gets overlooked,” Leshaw said.
“I think we did as much as we could in terms of just trying to help people understand what is within the purview of a council member. We explained that the city council controls NYPD budgets and sanitation budgets. We also printed resource directories for community groups and nonprofits so residents knew who could help them with everyday issues.”
Leshaw sees a similarity between Sanchez’s City Council campaign and Zohran Mamdani’s mayoral campaign. “Something both campaigns are doing is expanding the electorate and engaging young people. Our age bracket is larger, so election results should show that.”
New York City’s 17th Council District is currently represented by Council Member Rafael Salamanca Jr., who is term-limited after eight years in office. In the June Democratic primary, Sanchez emerged as the clear frontrunner, capturing 40.4% of first-choice votes in a ranked-choice election, outpacing Antirson Ortiz, Freddy Perez Jr., and Elvis Santana.
In the Nov 4th City Council race, Sanchez is up against Rosaline Nieves, a Republican district leader for the 84th Assembly District, and Marisol Duran, the Conservative Party candidate – neither has mounted a campaign with comparable visibility or resources, leaving Sanchez as the presumptive successor to Salamanca.
“I think it’s important to show that young progressive leadership can work, and that we know what we’re doing, and that we can chart a different path,” Sanchez said.
Sanchez’s field team is mainly made up of high school and college students from the district. No consultants. Just future voters. “Our team is people who care about the community because it is their community,” Leshaw added. “It’s by us, for us.”
When Sanchez talks about the Bronx, there’s a deep pride in his voice, “The Bronx always gets a bad rap,” he said. “People think of it as tough or broken. But it’s beautiful here. We have the city’s biggest parks, our own beaches, and this incredible sense of community.”
The pride in his community fuels his political efforts and fight for equity, “My district is very unique in that we are 97% Black and Brown. I think that gives us a real opportunity to really speak about Black and Brown issues,” Sanchez says.
Sanchez said hiscampaign slogan might sound blunt, but it’s simple, “I ran on clean the damn streets, but what I’m really saying is getting the city to actually pay attention to us enough to make sure that our streets are just as clean as the Upper East Side, I’m just here to demand basic equity, not anything more or anything less.”
For Bronx resident Norma Saunders, the message resonates. “We need more resources for working families, housing for residents, more after-school programs for our kids,” she said.
“The resources here are lacking. Our Brown and Black communities are always the last to get what we need. But I am hopeful that change is coming. I really believe Justin can help make it happen.”
Sanchez knows he’s running at a time of high polarization, distrust, and fatigue in politics. “There was a moment I asked, ‘What are we even doing all this for?’ Look at what’s happening in our government. I never imagined, growing up, that we would live to experience this. I never imagined that I’d be entering a political office at the verge of a political takeover of the city.”
Yet, he remembers a conversation that brought him back to purpose. “A good friend turned to me and said, ‘But do you believe in the very premise of democracy? And if you believe in it, are you willing to fight for it?’ And I’m willing to fight for it.”
“I think of my grandmother who came here from the Dominican Republic when she was 16, with 30 bucks in her pocket, fleeing from a dictatorship. She came to the United States and settled in the Bronx with the promise of opportunity,” Sanchez said.“And for me, if I don’t fight for it – if I don’t put everything I have into it and give as many people as possible hope that this is something worth fighting for – then I’m letting her dream fail.”
The future of New York isn’t decided only in the mayor’s race – it’s written, block by block, by people who believe their community deserves to shine.
For Sanchez, that means showing up, cleaning the streets, and honoring the promise his grandmother crossed an ocean for. His campaign is a fight for an equitable South Bronx.
Kaylen Jackson is a contributing writer at the Bronx Times and a student at the NYU Graduate School of Journalism. For more coverage, subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram!
