Common Council Names Hunt-Robinson to Vacant Seat
The White Plains Common Council voted unanimously Monday, February 3, to appoint Nadine Hunt-Robinson to fill the Council seat left vacant by Benjamin Boykin (D-White Plains) who began service as Westchester County District 5 Legislator on January 1.
Hunt-Robinson took her seat at the Council table immediately after the vote and upon her swearing in Monday night.
In a later interview with The White Plains Examiner, Hunt-Robinson said her interest in government had focused on the national level where she witnessed a lack of compromise on the part of Congressional leaders who did not reach across the aisle creating a dysfunctional government environment.
After Election Day, when news of Boykin’s move to the County Legislature was confirmed, members of Hunt-Robinson’s community, in particular her ministerial fellowship group, suggested she approach the White Plains Council and make an application for the vacant seat.
Hunt-Robinson is a resident of White Plains, living on Walworth Avenue with her husband Rev. Dr. Tyrone Robinson, pastor of the First Community Baptist Church of Greenburgh.
“I contacted the Council members and through one-on-one discussions I decided to solidify my application,” Hunt-Robinson said. She added: “I am committed to the city. I want White Plains to continue to have development, to go forward with its second wave of renaissance, but to protect the environment as well.”
Hunt-Robinson also indicated she was interested in the activities of the White Plains Youth Bureau and was familiar with the agency’s work through its executive director Frank Williams.
As a registered member of the Independence Party, Hunt-Robinson did not make her way to the Council seat through the White Plains Democratic City Committee, a misconception Council President John Martin wished to clarify when he spoke with the Examiner last week.
“In the time I have been on this Council there have been three appointments: myself, John Kirkpatrick and now Nadine Hunt-Robinson,” he said. “In all three instances the Democratic City Committee was not involved. This is an appointment made by the Council.”
Martin added that there had been seven or eight applicants who had come forward, some as early as just after election night to express their interest in filling Boykin’s seat. He further said that the Council did not meet as a group to decide on their choice, but had communicated and met individually with each applicant and that process had led to their ultimate decision.
Originally from Jamaica – her family emigrated here in 1971 – Hunt-Robinson has spent a good portion of her life in Westchester County. She lived in Mount Vernon and now White Plains.
She attended New York public schools and later received her B.A. from Adelphi University and then a J.D. from Villanova University School of Law. She has worked in private practice and the corporate arena, with a focus on environmental issues. Currently, Hunt-Robinson is an executive for a multinational corporation.
According to her resume, during her 20 year professional life, Hunt-Robinson has been committed to service. While an attorney in private practice, she mentored students on legal careers and helped them find summer internships. As a business leader, she continues to mentor children from underprivileged neighborhoods in their journey to higher education, through various organizations.
It is her ability to deliberate across multiple disciplines with no pre-conceived mindset that will make her a good member of the White Plains Common Council, Hunt-Robinson claims.
Councilman Martin said her fresh and qualified perspective was a key factor in how the Council’s decision was coalesced in making her appointment.
