Former Governors Andrew Cuomo and David Patterson, City Councilmen Erik Bottcher, congress-women Carolyn Maloney and NY assembly member Rebecca Seawright were among the 30 elected politicians-turned-models who strutted the runway at Style Across the Aisle.
Former Governors Andrew Cuomo and David Patterson, City Councilmen Erik Bottcher, congress-women Carolyn Maloney and NY assembly member Rebecca Seawright were among the 30 elected politicians-turned-models who strutted the runway at Style Across the Aisle.
Founded by Skye Ostreicher, the annual fashion show is where local designers dress elected officials from their own communities for a bipartisan, high-impact runway experience. Taking place at the NY County Surrogate’s Court, this year’s nonprofit partner was Witness to Mass Incarceration. WITNESS is dedicated to fostering economic independence for formerly incarcerated, system-impacted and LGBTQ+ individuals. Sponsors included Airbnb, Uber, EmblemHealth, Aeon Nexus Corporation, Rethink Food, In The Room Media, and Beauty Social Salon.
Skye, whose company is called In the Room Media explained, “Style Across the Aisle is about partnership and collaboration. Putting politics aside to celebrate the human qualities and creativity of New Yorkers. From small businesses to designers to corporations to the very officials who legislate and lead, these are people coming together with a shared goal and vision to collaborate and learn from one another.”
Following the show, guests celebrated with a lively cocktail reception at The Balcony at Surrogate’s Court. Guests enjoyed tasty bites from Rethink Food Partners, while sipping on craft cocktails shaken up with Blue Ice Vodka, JAJA Tequila, and fine pours from the Israeli Wine Producers Association. Pictured l. to r.: Candace Bushnell; Ron Dyce and Jean Shafiroff with a friend.
Skye’s first hit came with Political Personalities, a series that replaced stiff interviews with unscripted, human encounters. She rode a garbage truck at 4 a.m. with an Assemblymember who once worked the route, co-piloted a Cessna with a licensed-pilot senator, and even got tattooed with the youngest City Council member.
These scenes aren’t gimmicks; they strip away talking points and make officials feel like people you might text. Friendships bloom. Skye’s instinct for connection shows up when she interrupts a conversation with a delighted “Wait, do you know…?” and forges a new connection. Style Across the Aisle is the breakout performance that shows how far Skye’s reach can stretch.
The New York Fashion Week production debuted only last year and, yet it already feels like a fixture.