Not Just Congress: 8 Races to Watch in New York’s June Primary

Voting in New York’s primary starts soon, with early voting beginning June 15. What’s on the ballot?

New York’s second primary of the year, after April’s snoozy presidential primary, will have Congressional and state-level seats for voters registered in New York with a major party. (Can you vote? Here’s our guide on that .)

But not everyone will have races on their ballot; some seats are uncontested. Others are technically up for grabs, but don’t have serious challengers to incumbents. Check your sample ballot from the Board of Elections with this address look-up tool.

Among the tight races is a contest in 16th Congressional District, which covers parts of Westchester county and a portion of The Bronx, that has drawn national attention.

There, incumbent Rep. Jamaal Bowman is in a tough race with Westchester County executive George Latimer. A new poll by PIX11, Emerson College and The Hill shows that Latimer is leading by 17 points against the incumbent, just two weeks before Election Day.

Both candidates have drawn millions in donations, including from pro-Israel groups backing Latimer against Bowman, who has been a vocal critic of the war in Gaza. Last week, AIPAC, a pro-Israel political action committee, launched an ad campaign attacking Bowman that featured the son of Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel.

But some New Yorkers have more at stake in state-level races for members of the state Senate and Assembly. In some of those elections, endorsements from the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) and a newly registered , New York-based pro-Israel political action committee are drawing battle lines in the boroughs.

Here’s a list of races to watch, by borough. (Sorry, Staten Islanders: There are no primary contests there in June.)

QUEENS

35th Assembly District: East Elmhurst and parts of Corona and Rego Park

Incumbent: Jeffrion Aubry, retiring

Democratic primary candidates: Hiram Monserrate and Larina Hooks

Monserrate is a familiar name in this western Queens district, which includes East Elmhurst, Corona and the large LeFrak City apartment complex. The seat is currently held by Jeffrion Aubry, who announced his retirement late last year after serving more than 30 years. He supports Larinda Hooks, a district leader, to replace him.

Monserrate, a perennial candidate in the area, has been vying to get back to elected office since 2016 . He was booted from the state Senate in 2010 following an assault conviction and ran unsuccessfully for the City Council, and the state legislature.

37th Assembly District : Sunnyside, portions of Ridgewood, Long Island City and Maspeth

Incumbent: Juan Ardila

Democratic primary candidates: Juan Ardila , Johanna Carmona and Claire Valdez

Assemblymember Juan Ardila once had significant backing from progressive Democrats when he won his race for this seat in 2022, but quicky lost support after sexual assault allegations against him surfaced just a few months after he took office. At the time, both Gov. Kathy Hochul and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez asked him to step down.

He’s now being challenged by Claire Valdez and Johanna Carmona, who have each fundraised and campaigned hard. Both have over $100,000 left in their campaign coffers this cycle, according to latest campaign finance reports.

Ardila has less funds available, with his latest disclosure showing he has just over $17,000.

Valdez, a union organizer and member of the New York City DSA chapter, received endorsements that were previously given to Ardila, including from Rep. Ocasio-Cortez. Valdez has also received support from the New York Working Families Party, which supported the incumbent during his last race.

Johanna Carmona, who works as a legislative administrative manager for the City Council, ran against Ardila in the 2022 primaries and came in third with nearly 20% of votes.

Ardila’s competitors have not shied away from bringing up the sexual assault allegations against him in the campaign. When announcing her candidacy, Valdez said , “I’m running to represent Assembly District 37 because our community deserves an experienced representative who isn’t too busy dealing with personal scandals to get to work.”

40th Assembly District: Flushing and Linden Hill

Incumbent: Ron Kim

Democratic primary candidates: Yi Andy Chen , Ron Kim and Dao Yin

This year will likely be another tight race for incumbent Assemblymember Ron Kim, who eked out a win in his 2022 primary and over a conservative competitor in the general election that year. His district has become increasingly red , driven by Asian voters in Flushing who have become more likely to support Republicans.

Kim has represented the 40th district since 2013. His main competitor this year is  medical supply entrepreneur Yi Andy Chen, who ran unsuccessfully against Shekar Krishnan for City Council in 2021. Chen has raked in a lot of cash this cycle, with $170,000 left on hand, latest campaign finance records show.

That rivals Kim’s remaining war chest of nearly $220,000. The third candidate, Dao Yin, currently has no cash on hand as of late May. Yin was the subject of an investigation by The New York Times that found several of his cash donations were found to be fake. More than a dozen listed donors told the newspaper that they had not donated to Yin’s campaign nor were familiar with the candidate.

Under new state finance rules, Chen has received larger per person contributions than Kim, THE CITY previously reported .

Initially, Chen’s fundraising efforts raised eyebrows in January when his campaign financial disclosure was amended several times with different contribution amounts. While it’s normal for candidates to amend their disclosures, it is usually relatively small numbers. Chen’s amendments varied more than $100,000.

MANHATTAN

69th Assembly District: Manhattan Valley, Morningside Heights and the Upper West Side

Incumbent: Danny O’Donnell, retiring

Democratic primary candidates: Micah Lasher , Eli Northrup , Carmen Quinones and Melissa Rosenberg

Outgoing Assemblymember Danny O’Donnell, who represents parts of the west side and Upper Manhattan, announced in late 2023 that he was retiring after serving the district since 2002. Although multiple candidates are up for the open seat, the two frontrunners in fundraising and endorsements are political consultant Micah Lasher and public defender Eli Northrup . Lasher’s latest campaign disclosure showed he had over $300,000 left in his coffers through late May, and Northrup closed with a little over $116,000.

Lasher is a longtime Manhattan political consultant who founded the lobbying firm SKDKnickerbocker, worked for the Bloomberg administration and most recently served as an advisor to Gov. Kathy Hochul. He’s been endorsed by many local Democrats for the spot, including Rep. Adriano Espaillat, Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine and city Comptroller Brand Lander.

But Northrup, a public defender with Bronx Defenders, has the support of O’Donnell himself. Citing Northrup’s commitment to reform, the retiring Assemblymember endorsed him last week .

BROOKLYN

50th Assembly District: Greenpoint and Williamsburg

Incumbent: Emily Gallagher

Democratic primary candidates: Andrew Bodiford , Emily Gallagher and Anathea Simpkin

Assemblymember Emily Gallagher is running for re-election this year. She was first elected in 2020 with the backing of the DSA, where she is a member, and has kept her seat since then. Gallagher currently has numerous political endorsements , including from Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso and several City Council members including the Councilmembers in Williamsburg and Greenpoint, Jennifer Gutierrez and Lincoln Restler.

Gallagher’s competitors this year are associate vice president of Sandy Hook Promise Anathea Simpkin and attorney Andrew Bodiford. Simpkin has fewer endorsements but has garnered support from members of the community that have taken issue with the street safety redesign of McGuinness Boulevard supported by Gallagher.

Simpkin’s biggest supporter has been Anthony Argento, THE CITY previously reported, who has donated $3,000 to her campaign directly and another $3,000 through associated businesses. Argento, owner of Broadway Stages, previously campaigned to pressure the city Department of Transportation to stop plans to redesign McGuinness.

56th Assembly District: Bedford-Stuyvesant and Crown Heights

Incumbent: Stefani Zinerman

Democratic primary candidates: Eon Huntley and Stefani Zinerman

Eon Huntley, a political newcomer, is trying to unseat incumbent Stefani Zinerman in this Central Brooklyn district. Huntley has been endorsed by the DSA, which is looking to broaden their reach in the state legislature, backing a total of three challengers this season. Zinerman has been in her seat since 2020.

By the money, Huntley has mounted a serious challenge to Zinerman. His team has said  he qualified to receive the maximum amount of public matching funds allowed under state campaign finance law — $175,000.

Zinerman has a little over $50,000 in funds as of late May. She is also backed by at least two independent expenditure groups .

One, the real estate-funded New York Women Lead has taken in about $140,000 to spend in this year’s races and spent $22,000 to support Zinerman. She has also been promised support from Solidarity PAC, a new political action committee launched to support pro-Israel Democrats and those running against DSA candidates. The PAC has endorsed several other incumbents. While Zinerman has been quiet on where she stands on the Israel-Gaza war, Huntley has been vocal about his pro-Palestinian stance.

Huntley has been criticized by Zinerman’s campaign, which says that he is an outsider to the district (Huntley lives one block away). State law mandates that representatives of legislative districts must live within their boundaries by the time a candidate assumes office.

When asked by THE CITY if Huntley plans to move, his team said yes. “Eon will move. He lives in Bed-Stuy now, as he has for 15 years, about 300 feet from the district,” said his campaign manager, Arielle Swernoff.

THE BRONX

77th Assembly District: Claremont, Highbridge and Morris Heights

Incumbent: Landon Dais

Democratic primary candidates: Leonardo Coello and Landon Dais

Assemblymember Landon Dais has only been the incumbent in this district for a few months, and will now have to run again during the Democratic primary this month to keep the seat.

Dais won the special election against Republican Norman McGill in February after former Assemblymember Latoya Joyner resigned from her position to work in the private sector. Joyner supported Dais’ bid early this year for her position.

Dais is being challenged by Leonardo Coello, who currently serves as the Bronx borough director for the mayor’s office. Coello recently received a key endorsement from Rep. Adriano Espaillat, who represents Harlem and parts of The Bronx.

Dais is not without his own endorsements, including support from former Congressman Jose Serrano.

82nd Assembly District: City Island, Pelham Bay and Throggs Neck

Incumbent: Michael Benedetto

Democratic primary candidates: Michael Benedetto and Jonathan Soto

Assemblymember Michael Benedetto assumed his position in 2005. Serving the 82nd district for 19 years, he is being challenged for re-election by Jonathan Soto, former staff community organizer for Rep. Ocasio-Cortez. This will be the third time Soto, who has received endorsements from the DSA and Working Families, is facing off against Benedetto.

Among the top issues in the race is the possibility of a casino opening in the district, at Ferry Point Park in Throggs Neck. Benedetto has been presented with legislation that would give approval for the casino to use some park land for commercial purposes. He has yet to make his opinion on that plan public, but has commented to THE CITY in previously : “I am certainly listening to the thoughts and concerns of my constituents before making a decision here to support or oppose this proposal.”

His opponent has not shied from saying he does not support the gambling center. “Let me be clear: I am 100% AGAINST the casino – and I oppose the recently-introduced Parkland Alienation Bill,” said Soto in a statement. “Our community needs fully-funded schools, climate resiliency, and affordable healthcare & childcare — not less public parkland, more pollution, and a space where rich outsiders extract wealth from our neighborhood.”

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