Stefani Zinerman

Stefani Zinerman is an American politician. A member of the Democratic Party, she currently represents district 56, which includes Bedford-Stuyvesant and Crown Heights in Brooklyn, New York, in the New York State Assembly.

Zinerman grew up in Downtown Brooklyn in Gowanus public housing. Her parents were from Bedford-Stuyvesant, and lived in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn until they were able to move to Gowanus through the New York City Housing Authority. She credits her parents for encouraging her interest in politics.

Zinerman studied business management at the Rochester Institute of Technology. She worked in the banking industry and beverage distribution, and later was senior manager for a New York City adult literacy program.^{[dead link]}

Zinerman also served as a pastor and was involved in community organizations including the Brooklyn NAACP and Age-Friendly, a program she chaired that helps local leaders improve their communities for the elderly.

Zinerman entered local politics after New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg defunded the Begin Education/Employment Gain Independence Now (BEGIN) program; she volunteered with the Obama For America campaign, becoming the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood volunteer leader.

Zinerman served as Robert E. Cornegy's petition and campaign manager starting in 2012 and became his chief of staff once he was elected. As a staffer, she focused on serving the African American community of Bedford-Stuyvesant and Crown Heights, being a member of the Black, Latino and Asian Caucus with Cornegy, which worked on issues such as juvenile criminal justice reform and classifying the murder of Timothy Caughman as a hate crime.

When Tremaine Wright announced she would not be seeking reelection in the 56th Assembly District in order to instead run for State Senate, Zinerman announced her candidacy at the Weeksville Heritage Center, with the support of Wright. After winning the Democratic primary, she ran unopposed in November 2020 to take the seat.

Zinerman is a member of the Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic & Asian Legislative Caucus.