Fernando Cabrera (politician)
Fernando Cabrera | |
|---|---|
| Senior Advisor at the New York City Mayor’s Office of Faith-Based and Community Partnerships | |
| In office February 16, 2022 – June 15, 2023 | |
| Director | Gilford Monrose |
| Preceded by | position established |
| Succeeded by | TBD |
| Majority Whip of the New York City Council | |
| In office January 11, 2018 – December 31, 2021 | |
| Speaker | Corey Johnson |
| Succeeded by | Selvena Brooks-Powers |
| Member of the New York City Council from the 14th district | |
| In office January 1, 2010 – December 31, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Maria Baez |
| Succeeded by | Pierina Sanchez |
| Personal details | |
| Born | April 16, 1964 New York City, US |
| Party | Democratic formerly Republican |
| Spouse | Elvia Cabrera |
| Children | 2 |
| Alma mater | Southern California College (BA) Liberty University (MA) Argosy University (EdD) |
| Website | Official website |
Fernando Cabrera (born April 16, 1964) is an American politician in the Bronx, New York. A Democrat, he formerly represented the 14th district in the New York City Council, including the neighborhoods of Claremont Village, Fordham, Kingsbridge, Marble Hill, Morris Heights, Mount Eden, Mount Hope, and University Heights.
Cabrera is a socially conservative Democrat. He is an opponent of abortion and opposes same-sex marriage.[1]
Early life and education
Cabrera was born in the Bronx to a Dominican father and Puerto Rican mother. He received a B.A. in Religion from Southern California College, a M.A. in Counseling from Liberty University, and a Doctorate in Education from Argosy University.[2]
Career
In 2009, Cabrera challenged Maria Baez in the Democratic primary for the 14th City Council district in the Bronx. He had the support of the Bronx Democratic Committee and key labor unions.[3] He defeated Baez by 1.37% in a three-way race that also included Yudelka Tapia.[4] In November, he won the general election against Republican Yessenia A. Duran and Conservative Lisa Marie Campbell.[5] He won re-election in 2013 by a large margin.
In 2014, Cabrera challenged Senator Gustavo Rivera in the Democratic primary but lost 59% to 41%. He challenged Rivera again in 2016 and lost by a larger margin, 63% to 37%.[6][7]
On September 12, 2017, Cabrera won 55% of the vote in the 14th district Democratic primary election, compared to 35% for challenger Randy Abreu and 10% for Felix Perdomo. On January 11, 2018, he was elected Majority Whip and Chairman of the Committee on Governmental Operations.[8]
In 2019, Cabrera announced that he would challenge Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in the Democratic primary for New York's 14th congressional district, while criticizing her support for democratic socialism.[9] On March 1, 2020, Cabrera announced that he was ending his bid against Ocasio-Cortez and that he would instead run for Bronx borough president in 2021.[10] He lost the nomination to Vanessa Gibson, then chair of the council Committee on Public Safety.
In February 2022, New York City mayor Eric Adams named Cabrera a senior advisor in the city's Office of Faith-Based and Community Partnerships. LGBT groups objected to the appointment, citing Cabrera's history of opposing same-sex marriage.[11]
Political positions
LGBT rights
During his first primary bid against Rivera in 2014, Cabrera attracted ire for his opposition to abortion and gay marriage, as well as his apparent praise of a Ugandan anti-gay law.[12] In a video posted to YouTube and later deleted, Cabrera, speaking from Uganda, said, "Gay marriage is not accepted in this country. Why? Because the Christians have assumed the place of decision-making for the nation."[11]
Food and nutrition
In 2018, Cabrera and then-Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams introduced a resolution calling on the New York City Department of Education to ban processed meats from its school meal programs.[13] The resolution was approved in September 2019, shortly after the department implemented a policy banning processed meats.[14]
Electoral history
| Election history | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Location | Year | Election | Results |
| NYC Council District 14 |
2009 | Democratic primary | √ Fernando Cabrera 38.53% Maria Baez 37.16% Yudelka Tapia 24.31% |
| NYC Council District 14 |
2009 | General | √ Fernando Cabrera (D) 87.58% Yessenia A. Duran (R) 10.59% Lisa Marie Campbell (Conservative) 1.83% |
| NYC Council District 14 |
2013 | Democratic primary | √ Fernando Cabrera 74.83% Israel Martinez 25.18% |
| NYC Council District 14 |
2013 | General | √ Fernando Cabrera (D) 95.36% Stanley Butler (R) 3.50% Alan H. Reed (Conservative) 1.05% |
| NY Senate District 33 |
2014 | Democratic primary | √ Gustavo Rivera 59.31% Fernando Cabrera 40.70% |
| NY Senate District 33 |
2016 | Democratic primary | √ Gustavo Rivera 62.97% Fernando Cabrera 37.93% |
| NYC Council District 14 |
2017 | Democratic primary | √ Fernando Cabrera 55.06% Randy Abreu 34.69% Felix Perdomo 10.03% |
| NYC Council District 14 |
2017 | General | √ Fernando Cabrera (D) 83.67% Randy Abreu (Working Families) 10.41% Alan Reed (R) 4.36% Justin Sanchez (Liberal) 1.51% |
Personal life
Cabrera is the senior pastor of New Life Outreach International in the Kingsbridge area of the Bronx. He is a former program director for the Mental Health and Counseling program at Mercy College.[2] He is vegan and adopted a plant-based diet to help manage his heart disease following a cardiac event.[13]
References
- ^ a_henning (2019-10-10). "City Councilman Fernando Cabrera is challenging AOC". CSNY. Retrieved 2020-09-26.
- ^ a b "District 14 - Fernando Cabrera". Council.nyc.gov. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
- ^ "Kappstatter: Dem party pick Cabrera no wascally Pedro". New York Daily News. Retrieved 7 September 2017.
- ^ Primary Election 2009 Democratic Member of the City Council 14th Council District Archived 2012-06-02 at the Wayback Machine, September 15, 2009
- ^ "Our Campaigns - New York City Council 14 Race - Nov 03, 2009". www.ourcampaigns.com. Retrieved 7 September 2017.
- ^ "Rivera Wins Contentious Primary for Bronx Senate Seat". Retrieved 7 September 2017.
- ^ "J. Gustavo Rivera - Ballotpedia". Retrieved 7 September 2017.
- ^ Neuman, William; Goodman, J. David (2018-02-02). "In City Council, Power Shifts Away From Progressives (Published 2018)". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-12-27.
- ^ a_henning (2019-10-10). "City Councilman Fernando Cabrera is challenging AOC". CSNY. Retrieved 2020-07-21.
- ^ Campanile, Carl (2020-03-02). "Bronx councilman drops bid against AOC to instead run for borough president". New York Post. Retrieved 2020-07-21.
- ^ a b Rubinstein, Dana (2022-02-22). "Adams Is Challenged Over His Hiring of 3 Gay Marriage Foes". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-02-23.
- ^ "Fernando Cabrera Blames 'Liberal Media' for Senate Loss". Observer. 2014-09-10. Retrieved 2015-09-23.
- ^ a b Toure, Madina (23 March 2018). "New York City School Meals May No Longer Include Processed Meats". Observer Media. Retrieved 21 October 2025.
- ^ "Processed meats banned in New York City public school meals". FOX 5 New York. 4 October 2019. Retrieved 21 October 2025.