NYC mayoral candidate Maya Wiley launches first TV spot ahead of Thursday’s debate

Maya Wiley launched the first TV ad of her mayoral campaign on Wednesday, as the progressive lawyer looks to boost her profile in the crowded Democratic primary.

In the 30-second spot, which arrives on airwaves less than six weeks ahead of the pivotal primary, Wiley highlights her personal history and promises a mayoralty focused on crime and police reform.

“I was 9 when I watched my dad die, and it devastated me,” Wiley says while walking a Brooklyn street, drawing a parallel between the drowning death of civil rights leader George Wiley and the tragedies of the coronavirus crisis.

The candidate, who became a civil rights lawyer and served as counsel to Mayor de Blasio, says her father inspired her to cut a path from the ACLU to the NAACP. The ad, however, doesn’t mention her work with de Blasio’s administration.

“I’ve always been a change-maker,” Wiley says. “As mayor, I’ll work my tail off to save a generation of kids from the trauma of crime and injustice, transform the police and rebuild our economy for all New Yorkers.”

New York City mayoral candidate Maya Wiley (Barry Williams/)

Wiley has staked her case for mayor on proposals to slash $1 billion from the NYPD budget, to hire 1,000 new teachers and to fund so-called “community care” centers.

Along the way, she has scored support from 1199 SEIU, the city’s powerful health care workers union, and U.S. Reps Nydia Velázquez (D-N.Y.) and Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.).

But she has yet to break out from the middle of the field, typically polling in the single digits. The Democratic primary that’s expected to determine the city’s next mayor is set for June 22.

Wiley is due to join other hopefuls in the first televised debate of the Democratic campaign on Thursday night starting at 7 p.m. with political anchor Errol Louis hosting on NY1.