Yusef Salaam, the exonerated “Central Park Five” defendant, touts himself as an activist and family man — but now he’s likely adding New York City councilman to the list after declaring victory in the Democratic primary for central Harlem.

Salaam, 49, an insurgent, first-time candidate and father-of-10, secured a shocking win over the Harlem establishment Tuesday night – blowing away rival candidate and state Assemblywoman Inez Dickens, 73, as well as the powerhouses who backed her.

Longtime Harlem leaders, including Ex-Rep. Charles Rangel, Rep. Adriano Espaillat, Civil Rights NAACP President Hazel Dukes and Rev. Al Sharpton’s daughters — all longtime Harlem leaders — had publicly thrown their support behind Salaam’s opponent.

Over in Salaam’s corner, meanwhile, was Manhattan Democratic Party Chair, Keith Wright, and his son, Jordan Wright, who ran his campaign.

“Yusef Salaam is a known commodity throughout Harlem and if you didn’t know his name you definitely know his story,” the younger Wright told The Post on Wednesday.

Salaam, who describes himself as a lifelong Harlem resident, banked heavily on his painful past during his inaugural campaign for public office.

“We’d go to train stations and we couldn’t go anywhere because people wanted to stop him and talk to him. People would say, ‘I know he’s from here’,” Wright said. “People say, ‘I remember before you went to jail we did x – y together, I know your mother.”

“This is all family. It’s always been about family,” the campaign rep added.

Salaam, now known to many as one of the “Exonerated Five”, was among the teenagers wrongly accused, convicted and imprisoned for the rape of a woman jogging in Central Park in 1989.

After his arrest at age 15, Salaam served nearly seven years behind bars before a reexamination of the case led to his conviction being tossed in 2002 after a career criminal confessed to the attack.

The city ended up paying $40.75 million to the five defendants – who each served between six and 13 years in prison — to settle a civil rights suit in 2014.

In a speech to supporters late Tuesday, Salaam – a practicing Muslim — said his campaign had “restored my faith in knowing that I was born for this.”

Salaam likened his youthful imprisonment to being “kidnapped” but also called his nearly seven years behind bars a gift that allowed him to see a racially unjust criminal justice system from the “belly of the beast.”

“I was gifted because I was able to see it for what it really was, a system that was trying to make me believe that I was my ancestor’s worst nightmare,” he said.

“I am here because Harlem, you believed in me.”

With 98% of scanners reporting, Salaam had garnered 50% of the votes as of early Wednesday. Dickens was trailing behind with 25% of the votes, while the third candidate, pastor Al Taylor, 65, only had 14%.

Salaam had campaigned heavily on what he dubbed as an “Equity & Empowerment Agenda” that focused on housing and criminal justice reform.

He vowed to “right-size the scope of the NYPD” and fight to protect criminal justice reforms that address “over-policing and mass incarceration.”

His campaign included a push to incentivize small businesses that hire locally, as well as collaborate with public and private sector entities that provide high-paying jobs. Affordable housing was also high on his agenda with a slew of commitments to combat homelessness and protect tenants.

While all three candidates focused on promoting affordable housing, controlling gentrification and easing poverty in Harlem, Salaam repeatedly capitalized on his celebrity — insisting voters resonated with him and his experiences.

“We all want affordable housing, we all want safe streets, we all want smarter policing, we all want jobs, we all need education,” Salaam told the Associated Press in the lead-up to the election.

What set him apart, he argued, was that he offers a new voice that can speak about his community’s struggles.

“I have no track record in politics,” Salaam said. “I have a great track record in the 34 years of the Central Park jogger case in fighting for freedom, justice and equality.”

His campaign manager agreed, telling The Post that the budding politician has been saying “We need new solutions to old problems.”

“He’s excited to sit down and hammer out how we’re going to fix these things,” Wright said.

In the years after being released from prison, Salaam — a board member of the Innocence Project — went on to dedicate his life to activism.

In 2016, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from President Barack Obama.

He and his wife, Sanovia Guillory, are also the proud parents of 10 children – six girls and four boys — aged between 7 and 27 years of age.

“It’s a blended family of 10 children,” he told NPR in a 2021 interview.

“You know, when my current wife and I met each other, we became the Brady Bunch instantaneously. You know, she had two boys and a girl, and I had three girls.”

The couple went on to have four more children together.

“My hero, Malcolm X, is the father of six girls, right? And so here I am, in the same vein, same line as my hero, saying, wow, this is the coolest thing in the world,” he said, adding that their youngest, a boy, was born on his birthday.

His wife was among those to hail his victory, taking to Instagram early Wednesday to say: “Congratulations @dr.yusefsalaam Harlem showed up and showed out!!!!!!! We love you!!!!”

Salaam’s primary win virtually assures him a general election victory in a district unlikely to elect a Republican.

Asked what’s next ahead of the Nov. election, his campaign manager said the focus is very much on talking to the people and seeing what they need.

“There’s extremes on both sides,” Wright said. “He’s focused on coming together and being on the ground … Like we have been … being in tune with the residents of Harlem.”