On March 14, 2021, New York City Council Candidate John-Alexander Sakelos made an unprovoked telephone call to the New York Young Republican Club’s Activism Chairman, Gabriel E. Montalvo. Mr. Sakelos engaged in harassment of both the New York Young Republican Club and Chairman Montalvo, who is working for the campaign of Sakelos’ competitor, Vickie Paladino, in a role unrelated to the New York Young Republican Club. Mr. Sakelos threatened both Chairman Montalvo and the New York Young Republican Club, used crude sexual language, made remarks that explicitly demonstrate his distaste for Hispanics and other minorities, and besmirched Ms. Paladino’s reputation.
In a follow-up call with President Gavin Wax, Mr. Sakelos was unrepentant. He indicated that he was unaware when speaking with Chairman Montalvo that the conversation was being recorded, and he told President Wax that he would have spoken differently had he known. This cavalier statement demonstrates Mr. Sakelos’ duplicitous and dishonest nature. He will say one thing to his prospective constituents’ faces while speaking cruelly behind their back. Such churlish behavior belongs in a middle school playground, not on the New York City Council.
The New York Young Republican Club calls on Mr. Sakelos to issue an immediate apology to Chairman Montalvo, Ms. Paladino, and the Club. People of his character have no place in public office, and we trust that Republican primary voters will consider his unfit character when selecting a candidate to support in the election.
We also note that, while we previously endorsed Mr. Sakelos in his campaign for New York State Assembly, we were unaware of his true nature and the content of his character. The New York Young Republican Club had not endorsed any candidate for City Council prior to this incident.