STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Dozens of protesters gathered outside Rep. Nicole Malliotakis’ (R-Staten Island/Brooklyn) district office in Castleton Corners on Sunday to demand a town hall style meeting for constituents.
Organized by the Staten Island Democratic Party, the gathering outside the congresswoman’s office on Victory Boulevard also focused on proposed budget cuts that could potentially affect programs like Medicaid.
Those attending the rally said that a town hall meeting, whether in-person or virtual, would be a chance for constituents to ask questions to their elected representative and for Malliotakis to directly address their concerns.
“She’s claiming waste, fraud and abuse are where the cuts are going to come from but we all can do the math, That’s impossible. So we’re demanding that she take accountability for her vote and explain it to us,” said Laura LoBianco Sword, Staten Island democratic party chair.
In response to the protest, Taylor Weyeneth, Malliotakis’ chief of staff told the Advance/SILive,com: “The congresswoman communicates on a regular basis with constituents by mail, social media, television, radio, and she and members of our staff regularly attend civic associations, community boards, and other public gatherings where we engage with constituents to hear their concerns and answer any questions.
“Our community knows where the Congresswoman stands on issues, why she votes for and against bills, and they appreciate her work and advocacy, which is why she was just reelected with over 64% of the vote. We understand that the Staten Island Democrat Party—which organized today’s rally—does not want secure borders, safe streets, waste and fraud reigned in and taxpayer money protected, but that won’t stop Nicole from doing the job an overwhelming number of our neighbors elected her to do," Weyeneth continued.
Protestors rally outside of Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis’ office on Victory Boulevard, asking for a town hall meeting in response to proposed budget cuts on Sunday March 16, 2025. (Staten Island Advance/Mike Matteo)Mike Matteo
While fencing prevented the crowd from rallying directly in front of the congresswoman’s office, protesters crowded the sidewalk sharing their stories, chanting, and waving signs to the traffic on Victory Boulevard.
In between speakers, those in the crowd could be heard questioning if Malliotakis would be seen during the rally while others shared why they wanted the town hall meeting.
Jennifer Fanelli of Oakwood want a town hall meeting with the congresswoman to finally have a chance to ask questions after previously unsuccessful attempts to get in touch.
“As a Staten Islander, [Malliotakis] has to represent all of us. I’ve called her office, I’ve called her Bay Ridge office, I’ve called D.C., she’s not picking up. We don’t have to agree on everything but she needs to respond. The fact that there’s this many people in a borough that doesn’t get this active — she’s ignoring us,“
“We just wanna talk. If she can’t handle us just raising our hands, she shouldn’t be there,” Fanelli continued.
Jerry O’Leary, a Richmond resident, wanted to ask the congresswoman about proposed cuts to social services.
“I‘m a former cop, a Vietnam veteran and I’m 68 so I’m doubly pissed off that they’re cutting back on benefits,” O’Leary said. “People are just pissed. I feel almost an obligation to defend what we worked for our whole life.”
“I came out today for her to understand that we’re not going to stand by while she dismantles our communities one brick at a time,” said Victoria Molinari of Grymes Hill.
“I’m here today, and I’ll be here every day to hold our representative accountable — we need a town hall,“ said Jasi Robinson, one of the event organizers. ”She needs to address our concerns, our fears. And we’re not going to stop speaking up or standing up."
The Sunday rally was the third organized protest outside the congresswoman’s office this month.
On Friday, dozens of veterans and their supporters lined the streets to oppose proposed cuts to the Veterans Affairs Department.
Organizers of this event say that the VA cuts would endanger critical services for the over 11,000 veterans on Staten Island.
This rally was part of a national campaign, featuring simultaneous protests in Washington, D.C. and state state capitals around the country protesting thousands of proposed job cuts to the VA.
Earlier this month, Islanders again lined Victory Boulevard after the House of Representatives narrowly passed a budget resolution, which Malliotakis voted in favor of.
The resolution included a directive to the Energy and Commerce Committee — the committee that oversees Medicaid and other government-run programs — to cut $880 billion in spending between 2025 and 2034.
The fear, however, is that much of the $880 billion would come from Medicaid, impacting millions of Americans who depend on the benefit to survive.
While it’s not clear if the cuts would impact Medicaid, a comment from the Congressional Budget Office -- a nonpartisan agency that analyzes the federal budget and economy for Congress -- on Thursday “confirmed that it would be impossible to reduce spending by $880 billion without cuts to Medicare, Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (Chip). That’s because after excluding Medicare, Medicaid and Chip, the committee oversees only $381 billion in spending – much less than the $880 billion target – the CBO said,” the Guardian reported.