Another member of the “Exonerated Five” is setting his sights on the New York City Council.

Raymond Santana, one of five Black and Latino men who, as teenagers, were wrongfully convicted in the 1989 rape of a white jogger in Central Park, announced Tuesday that he is running for a City Council seat in the open 8th District.

The district, which includes parts of East Harlem and the Bronx, is currently represented by term-limited Councilmember Diana Ayala.

What You Need To Know

  • Raymond Santana, one of five Black and Latino men who, as teenagers, were wrongfully convicted in the 1989 rape of a white jogger in Central Park, announced Tuesday that he is running for a City Council seat

  • Santana, an East Harlem native, will now begin collecting the signatures required to appear on the June Democratic primary ballot

  • If elected, Santana would follow in the footsteps of Yusef Salaam, a fellow member of the “Exonerated Five” who won a City Council seat in the 9th District

“With a love for this community that stood by me in my worst times and a belief that we need a leader that will be a loud voice for people who are too often not heard, today I’m announcing my candidacy for City Council,” Santana said in a statement.

Santana, an East Harlem native, will now begin collecting the signatures required to appear on the June Democratic primary ballot.

In his statement, he said he was running to represent members of communities like his own.

“I am running to get guns off our streets and make our neighborhoods safer. I am running to improve our public schools so that every child has the chance to succeed. I am running to ensure that all New Yorkers can afford to pay the rent and the bills in a time when our dollars don’t go as far,” he said. “Above all, I am running to fight passionately for the people of this district and use my voice and effort to provide hope and opportunity for all the people who call this district home.”

If elected, Santana would follow in the footsteps of Yusef Salaam, a fellow member of the “Exonerated Five” who won a City Council seat in the 9th District, covering parts of Morningside Heights and West Harlem, in 2023.

Santana was 14 years old when he and four others — Salaam, Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson and Korey Wise — were wrongfully convicted in the high-profile Central Park case. In a release, Santana’s campaign said he spent five years in prison before the convictions were overturned in 2002.

Since his exoneration, Santana has started a clothing company, traveled and become a criminal justice advocate, supporting legislation to require video recordings of police interrogations, ensure minors consult with an attorney before waiving their Miranda rights and create a clearer path to exoneration, according to the release.

At the time of the crime, Donald Trump had taken out a full-page ad in the New York Times calling for the reinstatement of the death penalty — one of the now-president's first ventures into "tough-on-crime politics," according to the Associated Press. All five men filed a defamation lawsuit against Trump in October 2024.

Santana credited then-Councilmember Bill Perkins for combating Trump's rhetoric, and noted he'd like to do the same.

“Back when we were first accused, when things were really bad and Donald Trump was calling for our execution, it was City Council member Bill Perkins who stood up for us and provided hope,” Santana said in his statement. “Now, with our whole community under attack by President Trump, I am ready to provide that same hope and work to lead East Harlem and the Bronx forward to a cleaner, brighter, and safer future.”