Amber Adler, a Democratic candidate for City Council, recently grabbed a newspaper from a street box that had a front page ad for her campaign.

The ad for Adler, an Orthodox Jew running in a predominantly Jewish district, featured her son, because she said her photo cannot appear in the paper. Adler described the message of her ad.

“It’s the idea that you can bring people together, you can bring the Jews together at this moment, that maybe sometimes they’re bickering. You can bring different communities together at this moment, that sometimes, it’s not always easy,” Adler said.

Adler is running against Republican incumbent, Inna Vernikov, a staunchly conservative, fiercely pro-Israel, Ukranian-born, Jewish councilwoman. Vernikov turned the reliably blue seat red in 2021.

It’s still a message Adler thinks can prevail in a southern Brooklyn district that covers parts of Midwood down to Sheepshead Bay, Brighton Beach and Manhattan Beach.

Adler is also trying to capitalize on Vernikov’s recent arrest for a gun charge.

Vernikov, who is a licensed gun owner, was seen with a gun protruding from her waistband while counter-demonstrating a pro-Palestinian rally at Brooklyn College.

State law forbids legal gun owners from carrying firearms at sensitive places like protests.

She was later arrested and given a desk appearance ticket for a criminal gun possession charge.

“I think that many people know that she open carried, but I think that many people thought she had to be at the event and therefore, she had been harassed and was in danger. These are the things I hear from people,” Adler said.

Adler believes that when she explains this to voters, their opinion on it changes.

“When people understand it was illegal, then they say, ‘oh, well she shouldn’t have done that, why did she do that?’ and then the wheels start turning.”

Vernikov did not return requests for an interview with NY1 or take questions at the council.

The arrest apparently did little to harm her reputation, at least with government officials — after the arrest, she posted a picture with a top aide to Mayor Eric Adams, Ingrid Lewis-Martin.

Ezra Frieldander, a political consultant from Borough Park, Brooklyn, thought the issue would not hurt Vernikov with her supporters.

“Those that are very concerned about crime and the community and feel that Jews are vulnerable will feel, wow this is a heroine, she comes prepared. Again, those that found it a little bit distasteful will hold it against her,” Friedlander said.

The council speaker referred Vernikov’s case to the standards and ethics committee. The speaker said Thursday there will be no action taken until her criminal case is complete.