A Pelham Bay real estate broker is mounting a challenge against one of the Bronx's longest-serving state lawmakers, hoping to unseat an incumbent who has held his Assembly seat since 2005. Irene Guanill is running against Democratic Assemblyman Michael Benedetto for the 82nd District seat covering City Island, Country Club, Co-op City, Pelham Bay, Throggs Neck and Westchester Square, with Election Day set for November 3.
Guanill is running on the Republican, Conservative and Vote Affordable party lines, according to the Bronx Times, which reported on her campaign. The Board of Elections issued a tentative 2026 contest list, subject to change, according to vote.nyc.
Guanill advanced from the Conservative Party primary in June, and she spoke at a Bronx County Conservative Party meeting open to the public on October 19, where endorsed State Assembly candidates addressed attendees, according to firsthandmedia.substack.com. The same account identifies her as the New York State Assembly candidate for District 82.
From Foreclosed Homes to Community Board
The Bronx Times report describes Guanill as a real estate broker and community advocate who moved to the Bronx from Long Island at age seven and now resides in Country Club. She began her career in the mid-2000s buying, investing in and renovating foreclosed homes, per the same report, and she later founded Meet the Sellers Realty, LLC in Pelham Bay. She is a licensed New York State real estate broker and works as a property manager, the Bronx Times report notes.
Guanill has headed the Pelham Bay Merchants Association since 2012 and served on Bronx Community Board 10 from 2014 to 2022, according to the Bronx Times account. She told the outlet she learned about the district during a year-long process, and said the campaign experience had been humbling. She added that she felt at peace with her campaign and was ready to get its message out.
Cost of Living and Co-op City at Center of Campaign
Per the same account, Guanill's campaign is built around lowering the cost of living and housing expenses, supporting law enforcement and community safety, and increasing government accountability. She advocates for homeownership and affordable rent, saying homeowners should not have to live in uncomfortable situations because of money, and that homeownership should involve profit for the homeowner, not just the building owner, the article reports.
If elected, Guanill plans to focus on Co-op City, the state-supervised Mitchell-Lama development that the Bronx Times describes as the largest single residential housing co-op and residential development in the United States, with roughly 50,000 residents. The Mitchell-Lama program was established in 1955 to provide affordable rental and limited-equity cooperative housing for moderate- and middle-income families, according to the same report; it is a non-subsidy state program that encouraged private developers to build affordable housing through tax abatements and low-interest government-backed mortgages in exchange for capped profits and regulated rent. The program has also created vulnerabilities including financial distress, rent spikes, inefficient vacancy management, property oversight and potential fraud, per the article.
Waterfront Flooding and Dispensaries Also on Agenda
Guanill wants to start town hall meetings for East Bronx waterside neighborhoods that would address strategies for coastal flooding and storm water retention in susceptible areas, according to the Bronx Times report. She also hopes to eliminate cannabis dispensaries from the district, the outlet adds.
Benedetto, a Democrat who has held the seat since 2005, and Jake Kuhl were candidates in the 82nd Assembly District primary; the 2026 primary was held June 23. No vote totals, polling, fundraising figures or additional endorsements for either candidate were documented in the available records ahead of the November 3 general election.
