Now more than ever, it is critical to have uncompromised leaders in Albany protecting us here in New York instead of protecting political careers. Dangerous policies from Washington threaten us every day and we need our state lawmakers to be a wall of defense against federal attacks. In the Bronx, resources and investments are often inequitably lower than any other borough. It’s inextricably linked to why NYC boasts record-low crime but gun and street violence including teen shootings are highest and rising in the Bronx. 

As one of the most powerful and senior Assembly members in the state, my opponent is the kind of entrenched politician who unapologetically takes and keeps campaign contributions from a close Epstein associate, real estate lobbies and corporate developers. Meanwhile, hundreds of tenants across the district are facing displacement from building disrepairs and bad landlords, teenage boys are dying from gun violence and small businesses are shutting down leaving empty storefronts worrying the local economy. All this under his watch of status quo governance for more than three decades. 

As a teacher of 20 years and a mother, I will not continue any politics as usual in the Northwest Bronx. The skills that make me a trusted educator and parent will make me a dependable and honest leader in Albany for the entire 81st district. Unlike my opponent, I will be a representative for the entire district, not just one community, and I won’t be only showing up for photo ops. As a long-time organizer in the Bronx, I have criss-crossed this district and heard an overwhelming response from the community about needing change, and a fresh voice. I answered that calling to mount this primary challenge.

My opponent gives lip service to the struggles being endured by working-class people but he doesn't have that understanding himself. That matters when it comes to fighting for the resources and programs we need in Albany.

I don't need a poll or a survey to determine where I stand on the issues that matter most. I know where I stand because of my lived experience as a blind person, as a mother, and as a teacher.

We need leaders who understand the problems facing our communities. We cannot afford to wait for the political establishment to catch up. I'm running to represent the 81st Assembly District because we need leaders for whom policy decisions aren't an abstraction.

The incumbent has been in this seat since 1994. As one of the most senior legislators in the state he has become quite powerful. He is also part of the Bronx Democratic Party leadership, and plays a large role in the entrenched system of establishment politics. Yet, he has not used much of this power to be the kind of leader we need right now in the face of federal attacks and extraordinary unaffordability. He has become the kind of politician that has perfected political expediency to an art form–showing up to key events for photo ops at the right time, tacking his name on to legislation but does little lifting to drive passage or enact change. He also proudly takes and keeps money from a close Epstein associate, the real estate lobby and corporate developers. More than three decades of this kind of status quo governance has resulted in large parts of this district feeling neglected. As an organizer, I have traversed the Northwest Bronx both for progressive campaigns as well as civic initiatives. There is an overwhelming negative response to the incumbent. People are fed up with politics as usual. As a teacher of 20 years, mom, organizer and blind person, I have the lived experience that make me uniquely qualified as an advocate for the working people of this district. I am not an attorney and party boss who is building a political dynasty with the backing of the machine. In the year 2026, we must get rid of the type of electoral monopoly hurting working families. I am ready to fight in Albany for what working families deserve. The skills that make me a trusted educator will make me an ethical and needed voice in Albany for this district.

Agree

Agree

Agree

1. SEQRA reform - Although environmental review is extremely important, the program needs to be reformed so that it is less costly to build homes and infrastructure for working people.  Building creates jobs and progress for our state and old laws and processes must be consistently reviewed and updated.

2. Civil Service Reform - Hiring processes should often be reviewed and updated.

Agree

Agree

Agree

Agree

1. Expanding Housing - I am particularly an advocate for preserving and expanding low-equity co-ops like the majority of housing stock in AD81 like Mitchel Lamas and Amalgamated. These co-ops were historically created for immigrant factory workers and exists as a model to achieving home ownerships for middle-income working people.

Agree

Agree

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Agree

1. Busway Expansion -  I am particularly pressed to initiate serious discussions on adding east-west bus lines in the Bronx. Currently it takes more than an hour to get from one neighborhood to the next that’s less than 10 miles.

2. Automated Camera Expansion - I would like to propose legislation that would protect the privacy of citizens so this program isn’t used as surveillance. 

3. Parking - While I support reducing reliance on cars, the reality in AD81 is that due to such poor public transportation–average person who relies on bus service is spending hours on a bus just to get home or to work–we see many people having cars as a goal to reduce and ease ways to get to and from work. Most working people with cars will find it more unaffordable to live if parking costs increase. I think this plan should be income-based. I am very much interested in further discussions on this.

Agree

Disagree

Nuclear Energy Development: shouldn’t we invest in solar, wind and alternative power/green energy?

In 2023, I was a co-signer of a resolution for the New York State Democratic Committee calling for Climate Justice and Green Renewal. The resolution included support of the NY Heat Act that would require the shuttering of “peaker plants” like the one in the South Bronx, recognizing that these large fossil-fuel burning plants have historically been placed in red-lined, poorer communities of color where populations tend to disproportionately suffer higher rates of asthma, lung and heart disease. I also co-signed a resolution calling for the passage of the Building Public Renewables Act, a cornerstone of  New York’s Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA), aimed to create a democratically controlled, publicly owned, and sustainable energy system. 

The resolution did not pass with the State Committee but did go on to become state legislation that passed in 2023. 

As a community organizer, I am actively involved in local cleanup and gardening efforts with the Kingsbridge Riverdale Van Cordtlandt  Development Corporation and the Kingsbridge Historical Society to promote green and clean spaces in our neighborhoods.

When I get to Albany, I plan to join the NYS Assembly Standing Committee on Environmental Conservation.

I’m running a grassroots campaign centered on working families across two platform areas of focus: affordability and civil rights. 

My affordability agenda is in 3 areas: Housing, Childcare/Early Education and Local Economy.

Housing

We have a building maintenance crisis - out of control fees and neglected structural repairs that have mounted to unaffordable millions and dire disrepair. 

Renters face threats to tenants rights - the same neglect of building repairs that are costing tenants, many believe, are by design to force people out so landlords can sell to the next corporate developer. The 81AD is home to Riverdale Gardens, run by one of the most notorious bad landlords and I would like to work to help organize a tenants association for the residents and link anyone facing eviction to resources like no-cost right to counsel and assistance.

A combination of the above-referenced issues is threatening to displace hundreds of residents at the historic Amalgamated Co-Ops in Van Cortlandt Village, the nation’s first low-equity cooperative and model for homeownership for working families. I am proposing urgent measures to save this landmark residence, directly assist the residents who have had their cries for assistance ignored for years,and protect and expand other affordable units like Mitchell-Lamas. 

Childcare

I’m an elementary school teacher of 20 years, married to a teacher, and we were in debt for five years after putting childcare costs on credit cards. The Bronx has disproportionately more expensive childcare than other parts of the country, and access to quality care is even harder. Thanks to the Governor’s recent announcement of a historic $4 billion for free childcare and expanded universal preK, I want to ensure that these programs will actually come to the Bronx and that it is equitable and truly accessible for Bronx families through tapping of facilitators and state liaisons.

Local Business

Too many small businesses–the heart of a community–are also struggling with unaffordability. Storefront rents and commercial leases are rising at unreasonable rates, forcing small businesses and merchants to raise prices or close. These practices amount to greedy landlords jacking up rents by design to push merchants out. The state must be a bigger player in working with city govenment to keep these businesses open, offer programs and incentives that prevent predatory business practices and save our local mom and pop shops.

Next, are three areas of New Yorkers civil rights that the State can and should be more proactive in protecting:

Healthcare as a Human Right

NY State can actually do something about protecting our healthcare and improving our I’m benefits especially in the face of the federal government threatening cuts, which is why I support the NY Health Act.  

Whether it's addressing the healthcare worker shortage or calling for additional investments in developmental healthcare clinics, I would like to propose a plan that will address growing concerns of high insurance premiums, obstacles with prior authorizations and a state response to the dangerous and politicized agenda of the new U.S. Department of Health.

As a woman who suffered post-partum hemorrhaging after medical professionals didn't believe my concerns during pregnancy, I will work to prevent maternal mortality, especially among women of color.

Immigrants Rights

It is time to pass the NY FOR ALL and ensure NY state agencies, including law enforcement, are prohibited from any cooperation and collusion with ICE, and that no NY correctional facilities are supplied as ICE detention centers. I also call on state prosecutors to charge federal agents who violate constitutional due process rights of any individual in our state.

While I urge the passage of the MELT ACT–which would prohibit federal immigration enforcement agents, including those from ICE, from wearing masks or operating in plainclothes or unmarked vehicles during civilian immigration actions–I am categorically for getting ICE completely out of the state of New York. They are a state-sanctioned domestic terror organization and the entire Dept of Homeland Security needs to be dismantled, and its secretary removed, impeached and prosecuted.

Disability Rights

I have a degenerative retinal condition that impairs my vision gradually as I age. I should be celebrating the 35th anniversary of the Americans with Disability Act this year, but I join millions of disabled Americans now living in fear as the Trump administration has started slowly delivering on Project 2025’s promise to gut the ADA. This is why I am calling for state legislative action in response to the lawless federal government’s attacks on disability rights. The rogue DOJ removed nearly a dozen ADA compliance guidance for businesses last year. These moves are promises to roll back enforcement of the ADA’s Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act–federal civil rights protections for educational services and programs for the disabled that receive funding from the U.S. Department of Education (also on the chopping block to be dismantled by the Trump administration). I would propose immediate legislation to codify Section 504 in the state and earmark funding in NYS BOE for education and disability services, which impacts children the most.