Campaign Insiders is PoliticsNY’s latest Q&A series featuring candidates running for office in the 2026 New York primary election. This edition of Campaign Insiders features current Assembly Member Alex Bores who is running to represent New York’s 12th Congressional District. The 12th Congressional District includes Manhattan’s Upper West Side, Upper East Side, Morningside Heights, Chelsea, Yorkville, Carnegie Hill, Kips Bay, Roosevelt Island, Tudor City, Gramercy Park, Central Park, Turtle Bay, Hell’s Kitchen, Murray Hill, Lenox Hill, Theater District, Clinton, Garment District, Sutton Place, Midtown, Union Square, Times Square, Lincoln Center and Stuyvesant Town.
What are the top three issues for your campaign?
My focus is making sure New Yorkers can afford to put down roots, live, grow, thrive, and raise a family right here in the city. That shouldn’t be a luxury; it should be the standard. To do that, we need to stand up, no matter the cost, to the powerful monied interests and oligarchs in tech and in control of the government. That’s what I’ve always done, and they’re terrified of me because of it.
Why did you decide to run for office?
I’m a new dad, every time I look at my son, I think about the future of our country. I do what I can in Albany, but the things keeping me up at night and fights that matter most are being waged in Washington. Everyone will tell you they’ll fight Trump, and we will. But I’m running because I want to do more: rebuild our democracy, reimagine government, and ensure innovation serves everyone – not just billionaires.
What do you believe is the top issue facing voters and how do you plan to address it if elected?
Growing up, my friends and I never dreamed of living anywhere else. My parents built lives and raised kids on the UES on union wages. Today, my high school friends with the same jobs my parents had to move away because they couldn’t afford the rent. My plan to fix the tax code, lower insurance premiums, and invest in infrastructure while battling Trump’s tariffs will ease the cost-of-living crisis, enabling New Yorkers to thrive here.
How does your background qualify you to hold office?
As the first Democrat in the Assembly with a computer science degree, my background helps me know how to make government work and deliver effectively for people AND understand the technological changes that are coming right around the corner. Rated one of the most effective legislators, I succeeded in cracking down on telemarketing scams, giving New Yorkers the power to cancel unwanted subscriptions, and banning bots that hog restaurant reservations and sped up government services.
Why should voters choose you over your opponents?
Every candidate in NY-12 will claim to fight Trump, but I’m the one that Trump’s allies take seriously. After passing the country’s strongest AI safety regulation, they know I’ll stand up and fight for regular people in Washington. They’re terrified. Three of Trump’s largest donors created a Super PAC that is spending $10 million against me. On issue after issue, the powerful are trying to stop me because they know I’m a threat.
From now until early voting, Campaign Insiders will be featuring candidates from select democratic primary races across the City & State. Be sure to check back to hear from a wide range of candidates from assembly, senate, and congressional races as well as the NYS comptroller race!
Early voting in NYC is June 13th-21st and Election Day is June 23rd. Check out the PoliticsNY Election Primer to see who will be on your ballot and don’t forget to vote this June!
