Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso has officially launched his campaign for New York’s Seventh Congressional District, one of the most progressive districts in the United States. The seat will open next year when Representative Nydia Velázquez retires after serving 16 terms.
Reynoso, forty-two, is the first prominent elected official to enter the race. He previously represented District Thirty-Four on the New York City Council and has long been aligned with progressive politics in the borough.
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“Nydia is a hero, a mentor, and a friend,” Reynoso said as he announced his candidacy. “She is a progressive pioneer who laid the groundwork for an entire generation of new leftist voices at every level of government. No one can replace her presence. But we must continue her fight, and we will continue that fight because the need has never been greater.”
Reynoso, who won the Brooklyn Borough Presidency twice with ease, enters the race during a pivotal moment for Democrats both locally and nationally. The party continues to debate how fully it should embrace the ascendant left-wing bloc that helped propel socialist Zohran Mamdani to victory in the mayoral race.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, a moderate, has pushed back against the idea that Mamdani’s faction represents the future of the Democratic Party, emphasizing that the party’s priority is winning enough seats to retake the House.
Reynoso is not a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, but he was an early endorser of Mamdani. It remains unclear whether the incoming mayor or the DSA will support him in this congressional race, especially with several socialists considering their own bids for the open seat.
Potential contenders include Queens Councilwoman Tiffany Cabán, State Senator Kristen Gonzalez, and Assemblywoman Claire Valdez. All three are members of the DSA. State Senator Julia Salazar had also been mentioned as a possible candidate but publicly dismissed the speculation, stating on social media, “I have no intention to run for Congress.”
Reynoso praised Velázquez’s historic legacy while positioning himself as a continuation of her progressive vision. The race is expected to draw significant attention as the Democratic Party navigates internal divisions and prepares for a high-stakes election cycle.
