It's Election Day! Polling sites are open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. across the state. You can confirm your voting site, review a sample ballot, double-check your registration status, and see other election-related information at vote.nyc. If you vote outside New York City, you can find this same information at elections.ny.gov. Don't forget that as long as you're in line to vote by 9 p.m., you can't be turned away.
We're thrilled to endorse 20 outstanding candidates for the New York State Senate and Assembly, 15 of whom are running for re-election and five who are seeking state office for the first time. Fourteen of our endorsees are running in New York City, and for the first time ever, we've endorsed candidates across the state, six in total, in districts ranging from Rochester to Suffolk County. You can read all about our endorsed candidates, along with notable aspects of their street-safety and transportation platforms, below. Candidates are grouped by office, Senate first and then Assembly, and listed in ascending order by district number. Click the region or borough links to jump directly to candidates in that particular area.
State government exerts enormous influence over local streets and transit systems, and your vote for StreetsPAC-endorsed candidates can help to ensure that the legislature will promote policies that make our streets safer and our buses and subways more efficient and reliable.
2024 State Senate Endorsees: New York City | Upstate New York
Andrew Gounardes, 26th State Senate District, Brooklyn (Incumbent) – Andrew Gounardes earned our endorsement when he won his seat in 2018, and again in 2020 and 2022, and this year is no different. He led the effort in Albany to expand New York City's speed-camera program, and sponsored the legislation that allows cameras to operate around the clock. His bill authorizing the renewal and four-fold expansion of New York City's red-light camera program passed earlier this year. His priorities for the next legislative session are the passage of his bill that would require installation of speed-limiting technology in the vehicles of drivers with significant numbers of dangerous driving violations, and another that would require the state to establish a goal of reducing driving by 20% by 2050. In addition, Senator Gounardes has been a staunch advocate for improved transit service and subway accessibility. You can help with Andrew Gounardes's re-election campaign here.
Brad Hoylman-Sigal, 47th State Senate District, Manhattan (Incumbent) – Senator Hoylman-Sigal, who represents the west side of Manhattan, has long advocated for safer streets and better public transportation, including legislative initiatives to mandate safety technology in newly registered cars in New York State and to eliminate parking minimums in cities, and pushing to integrate Citi Bike with the MTA's OMNY fare-payment system. He was the lead Senate sponsor of a number of bills on our priority list this year, including Sammy's Law, which passed as part of the budget this spring and will allow New York City to further lower speed limits, and a bill requiring the point-of-sale registration of mopeds that recently became law. He's also carrying a bill that would allow the use of automated cameras to enforce against obstruction of bike lanes. You can contribute to Brad Hoylman-Sigal's re-election effort here.
Kristen Gonzalez, 59th State Senate District, Brooklyn, Manhattan & Queens (Incumbent) – Kristen Gonzalez handily won her Senate seat in 2022 with StreetsPAC's endorsement, which she earned by expressing a strong commitment to public transit and street safety, causes on which she's delivered during her first term in office. She has been a staunch supporter of the campaign to redesign McGuinness Boulevard, a position that earned her a primary challenger backed by opponents of the proposed road diet. Last year, she collaborated with colleagues in the Assembly and City Council, and advocates, to develop the Western Queens Street Safety Plan. Senator Gonzalez continues to be a proponent of the MTA's free-bus pilot, while remaining committed to advocating for expansion of bus and subway service across the city. And along with her fellow State Senate endorsees, she has stood strong in opposition to Governor Hochul's efforts to sideline congestion pricing. She does not have an opponent in November.
Minita Sanghvi, 44th State Senate District, Saratoga & Schenectady Counties (Challenger) – Minita Sanghvi, Finance Commissioner of the City of Saratoga Springs and a professor at Skidmore College, is challenging incumbent Jim Tedisco for this upstate Senate seat. Since joining the Saratoga Springs City Council, she's focused on sustainability and the built environment; during her tenure, the city has built more sidewalks and bike lanes than any previous administration, and she's working now to lower the local speed limit. Sanghvi's vision for an "innovation corridor" connecting Albany, Troy, Schenectady and Saratoga Springs would include more robust bus service linking businesses and college campuses, and her proposed community preservation fund would help create and maintain greenway trails. You can get involved with Minita Sanghvi's campaign here.
Samra Brouk, 55th State Senate District, Monroe County & Greater Rochester (Incumbent) – Samra Brouk is running for her third term in this upstate Senate district that includes the eastern half of the City of Rochester. She has advocated repeatedly for increased investment in RTS, the public transit system that serves Monroe County, calling "a well-funded and fully operational public transportation system... an absolute necessity for economic and educational opportunity" and a fundamental issue of equity. Senator Brouk has championed Rochester's Inner Loop North project, which will continue the filling-in of a 1950's-era urban highway, while remaining adamant that the process meaningfully involve the local community at every step. She's worked closely with, and devoted funding to, the local advocacy group Reconnect Rochester, would like to see the city's nascent bike-share system expand, and has co-sponsored a number of street-safety bills, including "Idaho Stop" and complete-streets legislation. You can contribute to Samra Brouk's re-election effort here.
2024 State Assembly Endorsees: Long Island | Queens | Brooklyn | Manhattan | Bronx | Upstate New York
Rebecca Kassay, 4th Assembly District, Suffolk County (Challenger) –Democrat Rebecca Kassay, who was until recently an elected Trustee and Deputy Mayor of Port Jefferson Village, is challenging Republican incumbent Ed Flood in Long Island's 4th Assembly District, which covers Port Jefferson, Stony Brook, and Brookhaven. Kassay is an advocate for better public transit and walkability who commissioned Port Jefferson Village's first complete-streets study. She'll fight for electrification of the Long Island Rail Road's Port Jefferson branch, which will speed up commutes for people working in the city, and wants the LIRR to add a frequent shuttle train between Port Jefferson and Stony Brook. She's committed to pushing for improved cycling infrastructure across the 4th District, and has worked with Walk Safe Long Island to advocate for building more sidewalks. With a background in environmental stewardship, she understands the importance of offering people, even in car-centric Suffolk County, reliable and accessible alternatives to driving everywhere. You can get involved with Rebecca Kassay's campaign here.
Jessica González-Rojas, 34th Assembly District, Queens (Incumbent) – Assemblymember González-Rojas won her seat in 2020 with StreetsPAC's support. During her initial term, she introduced and led the passage in the Assembly of the MTA Bike Access bill, which became law in 2021 and mandates the creation of a strategic plan to facilitate access to the MTA's bridges and stations. She has continued to advocate for the redesign of dangerous Northern Boulevard with dedicated, separated spaces for buses and bikes, and was a vociferous proponent of the passage of Sammy's Law, working her Assembly colleagues hard to include it in this year's budget. Assemblymember González-Rojas has also been one of the major champions of the 34th Avenue Open Street, a position that landed her a challenger in the Democratic primary. Like a number of our endorsees, she has stood resolutely in support of the timely implementation of congestion pricing. She's running unopposed in November.
Claire Valdez, 37th Assembly District, Queens (Challenger) – Claire Valdez, a union organizer and Democratic Socialist, won the Democratic primary for this western Queens Assembly seat in June, defeating incumbent Assemblymember Juan Ardila and Johanna Carmona, who was backed by the Queens Democratic Party. Valdez ran on a broadly progressive agenda that includes a detailed transportation and street-safety platform, and will join several DSA-backed legislators in Albany who have emerged as champions of public transit and calmer, more accessible streets. She rides the bus almost every day, and supports the long-term vision of the QueensLink campaign to restore passenger service on the Long Island Railroad's Rockaway Beach branch. Valdez has been a ubiquitous presence at safe-streets rallies and protests from the first days of her campaign, and she's committed to pushing for comprehensive infrastructure improvements, including protected bike lanes and daylighting. She does not have an opponent on November's ballot.
Catalina Cruz, 39th Assembly District, Queens (Incumbent) – Assemblymember Cruz has been a reliable vote and committed partner on issues affecting street safety and public transit since first winning office, with StreetsPAC's endorsement, in 2018. She's been one of the leading proponents of the 34th Avenue Open Street, which forms her district's northwestern border, and in 2020, she led a broad coalition of elected officials seeking safer Open Street designs. She's been focused on the MTA's efforts to redesign the Queens Bus Network, advocating for deeper public engagement while supporting the necessary goals of improving service, and remains interested in efforts to improve the Department of Motor Vehicles, including potentially requiring periodic retesting of drivers. Assemblymember Cruz does not have a challenger in November's general election.
Robert Carroll, 44th Assembly District, Brooklyn (Incumbent) – Assemblymember Robert Carroll has been among Albany's most reliable voices for safer streets and better public transit since he first won office in 2016. A StreetsPAC endorsee several times over, he has been one of the legislature's most prominent supporters of congestion pricing, and was quick to denounce Governor Hochul's 11th-hour reversal. He's been a strong proponent of automated camera enforcement, including the use of cameras to keep bus lanes and bus stops clear of parked cars, and has called for the Brooklyn Bus Network redesign to include many more dedicated bus lanes. He introduced a bill last session that would require delivery-app companies to carry liability insurance for workers delivering on their behalf, and reintroduced his bill that would fund transit improvements by levying a small tax on package deliveries. You can contribute to Robert Carroll's re-election effort here.
Emily Gallagher, 50th Assembly District, Brooklyn (Incumbent) – Emily Gallagher, who first won her seat in the Assembly in 2020, has more than delivered on the promises that secured our endorsement as an insurgent candidate taking on a 48-year incumbent. A member of the Assembly's Transportation Committee, she has championed street-safety projects that include the redesign of dangerous McGuinness Boulevard, which earned her the ire of road-diet opponents who recruited and funded a primary challenger whom she soundly defeated. She's been a strong advocate for Open Streets, and organized a rapid-response rally among her Assembly colleagues in the wake of the Governor's congestion pricing announcement. Assemblymember Gallagher has also teamed with Andrew Gounardes to introduce a bill requiring the installation of speed-limiting technology in the vehicles of drivers with significant numbers of dangerous driving violations, which they hope to pass in 2025. She pushed for robust transportation accommodations during this summer's G train shutdown, and is supportive of significant reform of the Department of Motor Vehicles. Assemblymember Gallagher does not have an opponent in November.
Marcela Mitaynes, 51st Assembly District, Brooklyn (Incumbent) – Marcela Mitaynes is running for her third term in the Assembly representing the Brooklyn communities of Sunset Park and Red Hook. Elected with several other DSA-backed candidates in 2020, Mitaynes has joined those colleagues in becoming increasingly focused on transportation and street-safety issues. She opposes Governor Hochul's congestion pricing pause, and signed on to the "Get Congestion Pricing Right Act," which would have expanded the MTA's fare-free bus pilot – something she and her co-sponsors hope to revive in 2025. She's also hopeful about passing her indirect-source rule legislation, which would be crucial to stemming the spread of last-mile warehouse facilities in environmental-justice communities. Assemblymember Mitaynes has also joined colleagues in calling for universal daylighting, and safety upgrades to treacherous Hamilton Avenue, and she remains committed to advocating for design improvements to Brooklyn's Third Avenue and the BQE. You can help Marcela Mitaynes's re-election effort here.
Jo Anne Simon, 52nd Assembly District, Brooklyn (Incumbent) – Jo Anne Simon is running for her sixth term in the Assembly, and has won StreetsPAC's backing several times during her tenure in Albany. She's a member of the Assembly's Transportation Committee, and her name regularly appears as a sponsor on legislation crucial to improving both the safety of streets and the efficacy of public transit. Assemblymember Simon introduced a bill at the end of the last session that would prohibit New York City from opting out of the state's daylighting law, carries legislation that would reduce the legal blood-alcohol level for DUI infractions, and continues to lobby the MTA for restoration of the discontinued B71 bus route as well as the creation of a bus route connecting Brooklyn's Red Hook neighborhood with Lower Manhattan. She also stood firmly in support of congestion pricing when the Governor paused the program in June. You can support Jo Anne Simon's campaign here.
Micah Lasher, 69th Assembly District, Manhattan (Open Seat) – Micah Lasher, whom we endorsed in 2016 when he ran for the State Senate, is running for the open Upper West Side Assembly seat being vacated by the retiring Danny O'Donnell. Lasher was Policy Director for Governor Hochul before resigning to enter a hotly contested five-way Democratic Primary, in which he won a majority of the votes cast. Unlike his former boss, he's a supporter of congestion pricing, and has termed the Governor's pause "a mistake." He's called publicly for a Paris-style transformation of New York City's streets, and for modernizing subway signal technology, which he's noted is dependent on the funding stream that congestion pricing will provide. He told us that crosstown dedicated bus lanes on the Upper West Side would be "a great thing," and he's supportive of eliminating parking mandates to help spur housing growth. Lasher does not have an opponent in the general election.
Alex Bores, 73rd Assembly District, Manhattan (Incumbent) – Alex Bores was elected to represent Manhattan's 73rd Assembly District in November 2022 with StreetsPAC's endorsement. Since taking office, he's been active on the legislative front, passing a bill that will require more detailed crash reporting, and notably teaming with fellow StreetsPAC endorsee Brad Hoylman-Sigal on a new law that requires the point-of-sale registration of all limited-use motorcycles, which should help to significantly curtail the proliferation of illegal mopeds. He's also planning on introducing several new bills next session that would increase the accountability of delivery-app platforms. Assemblymember Bores would like to see the Department of Motor Vehicles take a more active role in regulating safety, and he supports re-testing drivers who've had significant numbers of violations. You can get involved with Alex Bores's re-election campaign here.
Harvey Epstein, 74th Assembly District, Manhattan (Incumbent) – Assemblymember Epstein, whom we first endorsed when he won election in 2018, has continued to be a reliable ally in Albany on matters of street safety and public transit. Despite continuing to harbor some reservations about the income level for the residential exemption, he was still quick to condemn the Governor's last-minute reversal on congestion pricing. He's been a firm supporter of expanding the city's automated camera enforcement programs, and is lead sponsor of a bill that would authorize the lowering of the speed limit on Open Streets to five miles per hour. As a regular cyclist – he was sent over his handlebars a few months ago by a driver who cut into a bike lane in Brooklyn in which he was riding – Assemblymember Epstein supports expanding the city's network of protected bike lanes. He does not face a challenger in the November election.
Jeffrey Dinowitz, 81st Assembly District, Bronx (Incumbent) – Assemblymember Dinowitz has long been one of Albany's staunchest advocates for the public-transit system, authoring the MTA "lock-box" bill that became law in 2019. He continues to support additional investment in, and further improvements to, Bronx bus service, including more frequency and better enforcement against motorists parking in bus lanes and bus stops, and would like to see more fare-free routes. He is the lead sponsor of an Assembly bill that would add four rider representatives with voting rights to the MTA board. On the street-safety front, his bill to renew and expand the city's red-light camera program passed last session, and he is lead sponsor of a bill that would allow the Department of Motor Vehicles to suspend the registration of any vehicle caught with an obscured or defaced license plate. You can support Jeffrey Dinowitz's re-election here.
Dana Levenberg, 95th Assembly District, Putnam & Westchester Counties (Incumbent) – Dana Levenberg is running for re-election in this district covering portions of Putnam and Westchester Counties, and which includes the Town of Ossining, where she served as Town Supervisor before winning her Assembly seat in 2022. She's been a vocal supporter of congestion pricing, and issued a statement calling for its implementation following the Governor's ill-advised pause, underscoring the importance of Metro-North rail service to her constituents. As Ossining Supervisor, Levenberg championed the planning of the MOGO Trail, a proposed greenway path that would connect the Empire State Trail to Ossining's train station and bus routes in between. Assemblymember Levenberg has also partnered with Andrew Gounardes to introduce a complete-streets bill that would prioritize the needs of pedestrians, cyclists, and public transit riders in state and local transportation projects. You can contribute to Dana Levenberg's re-election effort here.
Chloe Pierce, 107th Assembly District, Rensselaer, Washington & Columbia Counties (Challenger) – Chloe Pierce, a lifelong resident of the state's Capital Region, won the Democratic primary for the 107th Assembly District with StreetsPAC's endorsement. A lobbyist who has represented the New York State Nurses Association and companies in the clean-energy sector, she's been involved in public service since she was a child. Though much of Rensselaer County is rural, there's growing advocacy in towns like Bethlehem for better bike infrastructure, which Pierce supports. While there are local concerns around traffic safety, especially speeding, she believes the primary transportation issue in the district is the need for better public transit, especially to connect residents with health care facilities. She's also expressed interest in working to improve the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles. Pierce faces incumbent Assemblymember Scott Bendett in November. You can find information about getting involved with Chloe Pierce's campaign here.
Anna Kelles, 125th Assembly District, Tompkins & Cortland Counties (Incumbent) – Dr. Anna Kelles was first elected to represent the 125th District in the Assembly in 2020. An epidemiologist by training, Kelles has quickly become one of the Assembly's leaders on environmental policy, which she views as closely intertwined with transportation. Her bike was her main mode of transportation for a decade before a recent move (she's twice been struck by drivers), and she believes in investing in public transit, like Ithaca's fairly extensive bus system. She's a strong supporter of Sammy's Law, and thinks that allowing other municipalities to set their own speed limits is vitally important. She also supported the expansion of New York City's red-light camera program, and would like to see it piloted in other cities and towns. In response to a query in our questionnaire, Dr. Kelles recently introduced an Assembly companion to State Senator Rachel May's bill requiring regular updates to the state's bicycle and pedestrian plan. Assemblymember Kelles is running unopposed in the general election.
