Gur hearts New York City politics because there’s just so much blah blah blah to blog about. And with Room Eight, Gur has made it his biz to help the average unelected Jane and Joe get their triple-blah heard as well. Because more than anything else, Gur believes that the blah should not just flow downwards, and that with the blogosphere the people finally have at their disposal an effective tool for holding an oft-run-a-way establishment accountable.

And speaking of running, Gur recently ran an innovative civic engagement campaign to represent the residents of the 2nd Council District along Manhattan’s East Side. In doing so, Gur garnered support from the most diverse constituencies, including resounding endorsements from The New York Times, Daily News, Amsterdam News and Town & Village.

For six years prior, Gur worked behind-the-scenes at New York’s City Hall; first as Chief of Staff to former Council Member and Education Committee Chair, Eva Moskowitz and then as a Senior Policy and Communications Advisor to former City Council Speaker and Mayoral candidate, Gifford Miller. Gur graduated from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, and then spent six years working in the private sector as a hedge-fund analyst and freelance writer.