29-year-old becomes first Nigerian to be elected legislator at Albany County

A Nigerian, Beroro Efekoro, has been elected as an Albany County legislator in the state of New York.

He becomes the first Nigerian-born politician to hold office in the county and one of the 10 new people joining the 39-member body.

Eleven years ago, along with his father and siblings, Efekoro relocated from Nigeria to the States. He was pursuing a degree in political science at a University at Albany. In 2014, he became a US citizen.

He reportedly started a nonprofit International Organization for Education to help students in school and when he graduated in 2015, he was selected as a committee person by Carolyn McLaughlin, the then chairwoman of the Albany County Democratic Committee.

In November, the 29-year-old defeated incumbent Albany Democrat Doug Bullock in the general election. He will now represent the 7th legislative district, which encompasses the Beverwyck and Pine Hills neighbourhoods in Albany.

He contested for the Common Council’s 11th ward seat against incumbent Judd Krasher and Democratic challengers Alfredo Balarin and Clifton Dixon in 2017, but was unsuccessful. Currently, Efekoro serves as a deputy ward leader for the 11th ward.

“I’m very excited to jump in and get to work on the first day. I’m also looking to put in some initiatives that would improve education in the neighborhood.

“I’ve been involved in community service for almost all my life. I got elected as my senior class president just one year after I arrived in the U.S. I got involved in the Democratic process even before I became a citizen. I was making calls to Congress and calls to people to support the Affordable Care Act, to go out and vote for President (Barack) Obama,” he said.

He took office on January 1, 2020.