Mayor Zohran Mamdani and City Council Speaker Julie Menin on Thursday formally appointed Christopher Alexander to lead New York City’s independent racial equity watchdog beginning in August 2027, reaching an agreement after Council members pushed back against replacing its current chair, Linda Tigani, sooner.

Alexander, executive director of the NAACP New York State Conference, will take over as chair and executive director of the Commission on Racial Equity (CORE) on Aug. 1, 2027. Tigani, who has led the commission since 2023, will remain in her post through July 31, 2027, according to a joint announcement from City Hall and the Council.

The agreement came after Menin sided with Council colleagues who opposed replacing Tigani immediately. Her office was still vetting Alexander for the position Wednesday, according to a Council source familiar with the discussions.

“My colleagues in the Council’s Black, Latino and Asian Caucus and I believe today’s announcement will allow for a thoughtful and orderly leadership transition, ensuring that Linda Tigani can continue advancing key aspects of CORE’s mandates,” Menin said in a statement Thursday.

The New York Times first reported the mayor’s efforts to replace Tigani, whose commission has challenged his administration’s handling of the city’s first racial equity plan. 

The proposed shake-up in leadership drew swift opposition from the Council’s 35-member Black, Latino and Asian Caucus, which urged Mamdani in an Oct. 27 letter to retain Tigani as the commission carries out work on reparations and a truth, healing and reconciliation process.

Under the City Charter, the mayor and speaker must jointly appoint CORE’S chair, who can serve up to three three-year terms. Although Tigani’s appointment was announced in October 2023, her first term officially began Aug. 1 of that year and expired July 31, 2026, leaving her eligible for reappointment.

The Thursday announcement came on the final day of the Charter’s 90-day appointment window following the expiration of Tigani’s first term.

Mamdani had said Wednesday that he and the Council agreed to keep Tigani until next summer, but stopped short of announcing a finalized appointment for Alexander.

“Our administration and residents across our city owe Linda Tigani thanks for her work to advance racial equity across the five boroughs,” Mamdani said in Thursday’s statement, praising Alexander’s experience in civil rights advocacy, policing reform and drug policy.

A watchdog at odds with City Hall
A flyer shared by the NYC Commission on Racial Equity on social media called on supporters to rally outside City Hall on Oct. 28, 2026, to defend the commission’s independence amid Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s push to replace its chair, Linda Tigani.Photo via NYCRacialEquity/Instagram

The leadership dispute over Tigani follows months of tension between CORE and City Hall over the city’s racial equity planning process.

The independent commission reviews the city’s racial equity plans and monitors compliance with planning requirements established under the City Charter.

CORE previously sued the city over missed deadlines for the legally mandated plans. In August, a Manhattan Supreme Court judge found that both former Mayor Eric Adams and Mamdani had failed to meet those deadlines, although the current administration’s failure was to a lesser extent.

In a September evaluation, the commission concluded that Mamdani’s first final racial equity plan failed to meet basic City Charter requirements, citing the absence of overarching strategies, specific citywide measures of progress and updated maps identifying neighborhoods in need of targeted investment.

The commission also said the administration had failed to explain how community priorities shaped the final plan. The criticism came despite the administration’s release of a plan outlining more than 800 implementation strategies across 45 agencies, which City Hall has presented as a framework for addressing racial disparities through government policy and future budget decisions.

The dispute has also spilled onto social media this week. During a livestreamed Instagram conversation Monday involving Tigani and R&B singers Kelly Price and Tamar Braxton, Price directly challenged Mamdani over the proposed leadership change.

“Why does Linda need to stay where she is? Well, number one, clearly it’s because she’s doing the job, right?” Price said, before addressing the mayor directly: “You are a direct result of somebody holding the law and the lawmakers accountable to ensure that you get a fair shot to now call yourself the mayor of New York City. So, what are you going to do about it, sir? That’s coming from me. I’d love to have a conversation with you.”

At a rally outside City Hall on Wednesday, Tigani criticized Mamdani’s decision to replace her, arguing that it threatened the commission’s independence. She also questioned why the mayor was seeking to replace her while retaining Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch, whom she criticized over police accountability, according to CBS.

FILE: Dec. 29, 2022: Then-Executive Director of the New York State Office of Cannabis Management Chris Alexander makes the first legal New York Cannabis purchase.Photo by Dean Moses

Asked Wednesday about reports of a strained relationship with Tigani, Mamdani did not directly address the allegations, instead thanking her for her service and expressing confidence in Alexander’s ability to lead the commission.

“I’m confident in his abilities to advance this work, as well as his ability and capacity to hold us accountable should we waver in it,” Mamdani said. 

Alexander’s tenure at the state’s Office of Cannabis Management ended amid controversy. As the agency’s inaugural executive director, he resigned in May 2024 following a review ordered by Gov. Kathy Hochul that identified management failures and persistent delays in licensing businesses. Hochul had initially announced that Alexander would leave when his term expired that September, but he resigned early, according to reporting at the time by The City Reporter.

Before joining the cannabis agency, Alexander worked at the Drug Policy Alliance and as associate counsel in the state Senate, where he helped advance legislation on police accountability and criminal justice reform, according to City Hall.

In a statement Thursday, Alexander thanked Tigani for her work establishing the commission.

“Linda Tigani did the hard work of building this Commission from the ground up, and I am grateful for the foundation she laid,” he said. “I look forward to working alongside the CORE Commissioners, the Mayor, the Council and communities across the five boroughs to make sure the City’s commitments become real changes in people’s lives.”

This story was updated at 5 p.m. to reflect the development of Mamdani and Menin’s formal appointment of Christopher Alexander as the commission’s next chair, effective August 2027.