Candidate Forum
Thursday, Feb. 12, 7:00 pm
The 2026 primary season is here, with a ton of moving parts.
- Right now there’s a primary expected in our Congressional district, but also a lawsuit challenging the district lines of a neighboring district that may change our district lines, rearrange the candidates, and/or postpone the primary.
- State Sen. Brian Kavanagh announced this week that he is not seeking re-election, and candidates are throwing their hats in to campaign for that seat as we speak.
- The newly open seat for State Senate has changed the dynamics of the race for State Assembly in our district, with Grace Lee deciding to run for State Senate.
- Two party offices representing our Assembly district on the NY State Democratic Committee may also end up with a primary this year.
All this uncertainty affects the timing of our club activities. For the June 23 primary, petitioning to get candidates on the ballot starts February 24. GSD wants to hear from all candidates, have a discussion among members, and vote on endorsements before February 24 so that we can participate in petitioning for our endorsed candidates. Our meeting on Feb. 12 is meant to provide the opportunity to do all that, though we might need more time to finish our endorsement process.
Statewide primaries
We’ve already participated in a forum for statewide candidates (Governor, Comptroller, and Attorney General) with other downtown Democratic clubs and received statements from some of the candidates. We’ll post relevant material here as it becomes available.
Governor
Gov. Kathy Hochul is seeking a second full term in office, and is being challenged for the Democratic nomination by the current Lt. Governor, Antonio Delgado
Comptroller
Tom DiNapoli is facing his first primary challenge since becoming Comptroller nearly 20 years ago.
| Office | Candidate | Links |
|---|---|---|
| NY Comptroller | Tom DiNapoli (incumbent) | Website |
| NY Comptroller | Adem Bunkedekko | Website |
| NY Comptroller | Raj Goyle | Website |
| NY Comptroller | Drew Warshaw | Website |
Attorney General
Letitia James faces no primary challenge.
| Office | Candidate | Links |
|---|---|---|
| NY Attorney General | Letitia James (incumbent) |
District primaries
We also have contested races in our local districts.
U.S. Congress (NY 10)
Incumbent Dan Goldman faces a primary challenge from Brad Lander, Nickie Kane, and Savail Majid. We’ll hear from Goldman and Lander at our Feb. 12 candidate forum (Kane and Majid did not respond to invitations).
| Office | Candidate | Links |
|---|---|---|
| U.S. Congress (NY 10) | Dan Goldman (incumbent) | Website |
| U.S. Congress (NY 10) | Brad Lander | Website |
| U.S. Congress (NY 10) | Nickie Kane | Website |
| U.S. Congress (NY 10) | Savail Majid |
NY State Senate (SD 27)
State Senator Brian Kavanagh is not running for re-election. Assemblymember Grace Lee, former Assemblymember Yuh-Line Niou and others are assessing this race. Candidates will be added to this list as they officially announce.
| Office | Candidate | Links |
|---|---|---|
| NY State Senate (SD 27) | Grace Lee | Statement |
| NY State Senate (SD 27) | Yuh-Line Niou | Statement |
| NY State Senate (SD 27) | Sommer Omar | Statement |
NY State Assembly (AD 65)
With Grace Lee joining the race for State Senate, our Assembly seat also faces an open primary. Candidates will be added to this list as they officially announce.
NY State Democratic Committee (AD 65)
The state Democratic Committee meets in February to makes nominations for statewide primaries. Each Assembly district gets to elect two representatives to this body, one female and one male. Those seats also are open with some challenges in the works.
