Photo: Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
Brad Lander officially launched his bid for Congress on Wednesday, immediately earning endorsements from Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani and Senator Bernie Sanders. Lander, currently the New York City comptroller and the city’s top roller-coaster hot-dog eater, is primarying fellow Democrat Daniel Goldman in a district that represents lower Manhattan and Brooklyn neighborhoods, including Cobble Hill, Park Slope, and Sunset Park.
Lander announced his campaign with a very cute Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood–style video, which starts with animated birds flying around him and ends with him singing, “Would you be mine? Could you be mine? Won’t you be my neighbor?”
In the video, Lander positions himself as someone who would stand up to President Donald Trump, be a Washington ally for Mamdani, and not do “AIPAC’s bidding.” “Trump is abducting our neighbors and eroding our democratic institutions, and NY-10 residents are fed up with elected officials who’ve been acting like it’s normal,” Lander, who was arrested by ICE while escorting a defendant out of immigration court earlier this year, said in his Instagram caption.
In his endorsement, Sanders described Lander as a “relentless fighter for working people” and a “public servant who will bring a much-needed voice to Congress.” In a statement to the New York Times, Mamdani also gave his full-fledged support, calling Lander a “true leader” with “unwavering principles, deep knowledge and sincere empathy.” The mayor-elect’s support is not surprising — the two men endorsed each other in the mayoral primary earlier this year, and Lander became one of Mamdani’s biggest supporters in the general election.
“He has been a trusted ally and partner of mine and I’m proud to support him as I know he’ll continue delivering for those who need government to show up for them the most,” Mamdani told the Times.
Goldman, the current representative for the district, sits closer to the center than Lander and did not endorse Mamdani in the mayoral election. A representative for Goldman told the Times he is “proud of his progressive record in Congress and will deal with Brad and other challengers in the new year.”
Between this showdown in Brooklyn and the stampede of candidates uptown in New York’s 12th District (one of whom is JFK grandson–obsessive internet poster Jack Schlossberg), it’s shaping up to be quite the primary season in New York. Maybe there’s room for Andrew Cuomo to give it another go.
Stay in touch.
Get the Cut newsletter delivered daily
Vox Media, LLC Terms and Privacy Notice
Related