New York City Mayor Endorses Three Candidates in House Primaries

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has endorsed candidates in three competitive Democratic primaries for U.S. House seats. The endorsements come ahead of the June 23 primary date and represent the mayor's first major test of political influence since taking office in January.

The three races include an open seat in the 7th District and challenges to sitting members in the 10th and 13th Districts. Victory for the endorsed candidates would signal growing influence for the mayor within New York politics.

District 7 Race Assemblymember Claire Valdez is running against Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso to succeed Representative Nydia Velázquez. An Emerson College poll conducted May 16-17 showed Valdez at 23 percent support and Reynoso at 21 percent, with 43 percent of voters undecided.

An earlier Data for Progress survey from January showed Reynoso leading 28 percent to 24 percent, with 46 percent undecided.

District 10 Race Former City Comptroller Brad Lander is challenging Representative Dan Goldman. An Emerson College poll from May 16-17 found Lander leading 57 percent to 23 percent. A May 1-4 Schoen Cooperman Research poll showed a narrower 47 percent to 42 percent advantage for Lander.

District 13 Race Organizer Darializa Avila Chevalier is running against Representative Adriano Espaillat. A Data for Progress poll from June 3-9 showed Avila Chevalier leading 39 percent to 35 percent. An earlier Upswing Research & Strategy poll from March gave Espaillat a 42 percent to 28 percent lead.

A Marist University poll from March 26-31 showed 48 percent approval and 30 percent disapproval for the mayor among New York adults. An Emerson poll from April 5-6 found 43 percent approval and 27 percent disapproval among registered voters.