The Group Portrait: the Majority

For the first time, women make up most of the City Council.

- By Valeria Ricciulli. Photographs by Victor Llorente

JULIE WON, A 31-YEAR-OLD tech consultant who grew up in Queens, decided to run for City Council after her parents lost their income. It was the spring of 2020, and her mom, who worked at a nail salon, and dad, who worked odd jobs at a liquor store and a warehouse, suddenly became unemployed. They spoke mostly Korean, so Won tried to help them apply for public assistance. “We were going through all these government systems, but benefits never came through,” she recalls. This month, Won begins her term as a representative of several Queens neighborhoods, including Long Island City and Astoria. “If it weren’t for covid,” she says, “I would have never made the pivot to run for office.”