New York City Comptroller Brad Lander on Wednesday launched a bid for a congressional seat in New York currently occupied by another Democrat.
Lander, a former Brooklyn City Council Member and long-time Park Slope resident, said he will run in the June Democratic primary election against U.S. Representative Dan Goldman, a centrist covering Congressional District 10, which includes lower Manhattan and the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Brooklyn Heights, DUMBO, Cobble Hill, Park Slope, Red Hook and Sunset Park.
Channelling Mr. Rogers in his campaign launch video, Lander said the challenges New Yorkers face cannot be solved by "strongly worded letters or high-dollar fundraisers" and by doing work for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a lobbying group that works to promote pro-Israeli policies.
The two elected officials are both Jewish. Goldman has been vocal for his support for the Israeli government, while Lander has been a critic of the government's handling of the Israeli-Hamas war.
Lander is supported by Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, U.S. Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, state Senator Andrew Gounardes and state Assemblymember Robert Carroll.
"Brad Lander is a relentless fighter for working people," Sanders said in a statement. "He’s spent the past two decades taking on big corporations, winning better wages and fair working conditions for New Yorkers, including major victories for fast food workers, delivery workers and tenants. During the recent mayoral election, he and Zohran Mamdani proved that when ordinary people stand united, we can take on the billionaire class, and we can defeat corporate-dominated politics."
Lander pledged to be an ally for Mamdani in Washington if elected.
“At a moment of dark oppression, we can shine by fighting back together," he said. "While the oligarchy drives an affordability crisis, they shouldn’t be able to buy a seat in Congress. While our neighbors are being demonized and attacked, we can put our bodies on the line to protect them. New York is for everyone.”
