‘Progress 4 Peekskill’ Candidates to Challenge Incumbent Slate in June Democratic Primary for Mayor & Council  

All information on this page was written and submitted by Progress 4 Peekskill. River Journal North, as a matter of policy, does not endorse candidates for election. 

Peekskill residents ​Conor Greene, Vanessa Agudelo, Amy Vele and Amy Perlow​ announced their candidacy for Peekskill Mayor & Common Council as a forward-thinking slate of Democrats offering voters new policies, ideas and vision.  

The Progress 4 Peekskill team – which has received the Working Families Party endorsement — is running on a strong record of grassroots community advocacy and a bold, inclusive platform based on equitable growth, participatory government, and housing justice. The slate and platform was formed as a result of input from dozens of Peekskill residents representing a wide range of community concerns and priorities, and to ensure that Democratic voters have a choice of candidates in the June 22 primary election.

Conor Greene
Nominee for Mayor
Greene has spent two decades improving communities and serving the public through his professional and volunteer work. He is co-founder and board chair of Peekskill Walks, a resident-led nonprofit advocating for safer streets and healthier neighborhoods. In that role, he led the successful effort to turn Esther Street into a new public space downtown, and is working with the city and county to improve safety throughout our neighborhoods. His background includes covering local government as a journalist, communications and constituent services as a New York City Council staff member, and nonprofit government relations with The Doe Fund and Citizens Committee for New York City. He is also a member of the Peekskill Equitable Housing Coalition, and is currently pursuing a Masters in Urban Planning at Hunter College.  

Vanessa Agudelo 
Nominee for Common Council
Agudelo is a proud first-generation Colombian-American, lifelong Peekskill resident and an organizer in the Hudson Valley passionate about empowering people to engage their elected leaders and foster systemic change from the bottom up. She joined the fight against the Spectra natural gas pipeline expansion and later became appointed to the Peekskill Conservation Advisory Council. She is currently a member of the Peekskill Common Council after voters made her the youngest person to ever be elected in the City in 2017. Agudelo is currently New York Immigration Coalition’s Hudson Valley Member Engagement Manager, where she worked alongside coalition partners to pass the “Greenlight” bill in 2019, giving all residents of New York State access to driver’s licenses regardless of immigration status, and is currently leading a statewide campaign to establish a fund for essential workers excluded from financial relief during this global pandemic. She also is currently an appointed member of the Westchester County Hispanic Advisory Board and co-chair of the national committee for Local Progress on Reimagining our Economy.  

Amy Vele
Nominee for Common Council
Vele currently serves as a Legislative Aide for Westchester County Legislator Colin Smith and served as Campaign Manager for the Democratic Party in 2019. A lifelong resident of Peekskill, Vele graduated from the University at Albany in 2018 with a Bachelor’s in Political Science and Journalism. Upon returning to Peekskill, she worked with New Era Creative Space and started organizing and working with other community leaders/organizations. Her interest in getting involved locally stems from her desire to share different perspectives and create constructive, and much needed, dialogue around issues that impact working-class individuals and advocating for solutions that benefit everyone. Her biggest goal is to find ways to bridge the gap between the English and Non-English speaking communities in Peekskill. Vele is also involved in countywide organizations including the Hispanic Democrats of Westchester, Westchester Young Democrats and Westchester County Democratic Committee.  

Amy Perlow
Nominee for Common Council
Perlow is a Hudson Valley native, and a Peekskill resident since 2013. She has spent her career fighting for school equity, working ​alongside nonprofits and​ ​public schools to increase the percentage of Black, Latinx, and low-income students who​ ​graduate from New York City schools prepared for the future. Locally, she is an active member of Peekskill’s NAACP branch and chair of its Education Committee, partnering with other​ ​advocates to push for equitable policies and fair funding. Perlow is also a founding member of the​ ​Peekskill Equitable Housing Coalition, a group committed to halting the gentrification of​ ​Peekskill by ensuring the city’s housing policies and agreements are in the best interest of​ ​current residents. She holds a Master’s of Social Policy from SUNY Empire State College.