{"id":277572,"date":"2026-06-25T06:11:11","date_gmt":"2026-06-25T06:11:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/277572\/"},"modified":"2026-06-25T06:11:11","modified_gmt":"2026-06-25T06:11:11","slug":"jewish-anti-zionist-candidate-david-orkin-wins-ny-assembly-primary-amid-leftist-sweep","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/277572\/","title":{"rendered":"Jewish anti-Zionist candidate David Orkin wins NY Assembly primary amid leftist sweep"},"content":{"rendered":"

New York Jewish Week via JTA \u2014 David Orkin, a Jewish anti-Zionist attorney and democratic socialist, defeated incumbent New York State Assemblymember Jenifer Rajkumar in Tuesday\u2019s Democratic primary. Orkin won State Assembly District 38, which includes parts of Queens.<\/p>\n

Orkin, 35, an immigrant workers\u2019 rights attorney and union organizer, received 58.8 percent of the vote, while Rajkumar, who has represented the district since 2021 and is the first South Asian woman ever elected to office in the state, received 40.9%. The district covers a swath of Queens, including parts of Ridgewood, Glendale, Ozone Park, Woodhaven and Richmond Hill.<\/p>\n

\u201cPro-Palestine candidates are sweeping<\/a> in NYC tonight,\u201d Jewish Voice for Peace Action wrote in a post on Instagram celebrating Orkin\u2019s win Tuesday. \u201cPalestine was on the ballot \u2014 and won. David will be a champion for Palestinian freedom in Albany.\u201d<\/p>\n

The post from JVP Action echoed a message Orkin had highlighted throughout his campaign.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s so incredibly meaningful to me to be running this race as an anti-Zionist Jew, to be one of the few anti-Zionist Jewish voices that is in an elected seat in the state government,\u201d Orkin said in an Instagram reel posted by Jewish Voice for Peace Action earlier this month.<\/p>\n

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He added that, if elected, he would be able to go in front of the state legislature and assert that \u201ccriticizing Israel for genocide, demanding an end to the occupation, demanding an end to funding war abroad is not antisemitic.\u201d Israel vehemently denies accusations that it committed genocide during its campaign against Hamas in Gaza.<\/p>\n

VICTORY! David Orkin wins her Democratic primary for State Assembly in District 38. Pro-Palestine candidates are sweeping in NYC tonight. <\/p>\n

Palestine was on the ballot \u2013 and won. David will be a champion for Palestinian freedom in Albany. pic.twitter.com\/cvTVGb9Y6J<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Jewish Voice for Peace Action (@JvpAction) June 24, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Orkin\u2019s victory came amid a strong night<\/a> for democratic socialist candidates across New York City, including left-wing congressional candidates Brad Lander, Darializa Avila Chevalier and Claire Valdez, who also defeated establishment-backed opponents in their primaries.\n<\/p>\n

While Orkin was not endorsed by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, whose winning endorsements of Lander, Chevalier and Valdez signaled a pro-Palestinian lurch for the party in the city with the world\u2019s largest Jewish population outside of Israel. Nonetheless, his victory elevated a self-described anti-Zionist to the ranks of New York\u2019s elected officials at a time when debates over Israel have become increasingly prominent within Democratic politics.<\/p>\n

While Israel-related issues were not listed on Orkin\u2019s platform, which centered on affordability and immigration, he repeatedly expressed his support for a \u201cfree Palestine\u201d and attacked Rajkumar\u2019s record of support for the Jewish state during his campaign.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the past several years my opponent AM Rajkumar has walked in the Israel day parade but has said NOTHING against the war in Gaza, occupation of Palestine, or Islamophobic attacks faced by the people of New York,\u201d Orkin wrote in a May post on X.<\/p>\n

Rajkumar, who was a close political ally of former New York City mayor Eric Adams, in her campaign platform vowed to combat antisemitism.<\/p>\n

After establishing a Jewish Voice for Peace chapter in Tucson, Arizona, in 2014, Orkin remained involved in pro-Palestinian activism as a member of the anti-Zionist activist group.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been involved in the Jewish Palestine Solidarity Movement for 12, 13 years,\u201d Orkin told Democratic Left last month. \u201cI\u2019ve dedicated part [of my] life to making sure that Jewish people are creating religious spaces outside of Zionism, and to making more space for Palestinian organizing to have an impact.\u201d<\/p>\n

On the campaign trail, Orkin received a host of endorsements from prominent progressive groups and lawmakers, including Vermont independent Sen. Bernie Sanders, Democratic New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Jews for Racial and Economic Justice, JVP Action and NYC Democratic Socialists for America.<\/p>\n

\t\"\"<\/a>
\n\t\tDemocratic congressional candidates, Claire Valdez Brad Lander, and Darializa Avila Chevalier gesture on stage with Mayor Zohran Mamdani during a Get Out The Vote rally ahead of New York\u2019s primary election in New York City, June 18, 2026. (AP Photo\/Ryan Murphy)<\/p>\n

Rajkumar was endorsed by ActJew, the new nonprofit focused on combatting antisemitism, as well as the Queens Jewish Alliance and Assemblymembers Sam Berger, Kalman Yeger and Chuck Lavine.<\/p>\n

Orkin received over $290,000 in campaign contributions for the election cycle, including over $156,000 from the office of the state comptroller, while Rajkumar received over $270,000, including $9,000 from health care executive Daniel Lowy.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have dedicated my life fighting for immigrants and workers, I am proud to have earned their support in this election, and I look forward to spending the rest of my life winning the beautiful and joyous lives we deserve,\u201d Orkin said in a statement, according to QNS.<\/p>\n

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.<\/p>\n


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