Primary Election
Open seat for the first time in 34 years
Rep. Jerry Nadler (D), who has held the seat since 1992 and beat Carolyn Maloney in the 2022 member-vs-member primary after redistricting merged Manhattan's east and west sides, announced his retirement in September 2025. He endorsed his former aide, Assembly member Micah Lasher, on Feb 9, 2026. Ten Democrats qualified for the primary ballot; the contest has drawn national attention for its celebrity entrants (Jack Schlossberg, George Conway) and heavy outside spending.
32% undecided — Emerson College Polling for PIX11 · May 16–May 17 · 425 voters · ±4.8%
Single snapshot; the 2-point Lasher–Bores gap is inside the 4.8% margin of error, and 32% were undecided. Source
Micah C. Lasher
New York State Assemblymember, District 69
Alex Bores
NY State Assembly member, District 73 (Upper East Side), elected 2022
Jack Kennedy Schlossberg
Political commentator with large social following
George Conway
Co-founder, The Lincoln Project
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Affordability & cost of living
The defining kitchen-table issue of the race — nearly every candidate frames NY-12 around a cost-of-living crisis, and the COURIER debate led with affordability and housing. The split is over the main lever: child care, taxes and tariffs, or wages.
Micah C. Lasher
Runs a named 'Tackling Affordability' plank — 'the affordability crisis is no hoax.' Would massively expand federal child-care investment, raise and inflation-index the minimum wage, repeal Trump tax breaks while restoring safety-net cuts, and pass the PRO Act.
Alex Bores
'A New York We Can Afford' — says families are 'getting nickel-and-dimed at every turn.' Would reverse Trump tariffs with a direct federal refund, expand the Child Tax Credit and EITC, cap child care at 7% of income, guarantee six months of paid parental leave, and ban junk fees.
Jack Kennedy Schlossberg
Centers affordability on 'Freezing Trump's Tariffs' — legislation to outlaw Trump's tariffs on food and clothing, which he says cost the average family up to $2,400 a year.
LDCDPTHousing
A central affordability fight with real divides: supply-side builders, social-housing advocates, renter-relief plans, and curbs on institutional investors. The condition of NYCHA is a recurring theme.
Micah C. Lasher
Folds housing into affordability: expand federal housing tax credits and increase funding and eligibility for rental assistance.
Alex Bores
'Housing is a human right.' A supply-heavy seven-point plan: declare a national housing emergency, repeal the Faircloth Amendment to unfreeze public-housing construction, modernize NEPA to fast-track affordable and transit-oriented projects, reform HUD's income formula to reflect real NYC wages, fund the NYCHA backlog, and tax speculatively held land.
Jack Kennedy Schlossberg
'Jack's Housing Fairness Plan' — a federal renter tax credit, a NYCHA 'Fix-It-Now Caucus' to expedite repairs, and full repeal of the SALT cap for homeowners.
LDCDPTHealth care
A clear progressive-versus-pragmatist split between single-payer/Medicare for All and a public option, plus drug pricing — the signature lane of public-health researcher Nina Schwalbe.
Micah C. Lasher
Supports 'Medicare for All or a similar universal plan,' stronger ACA subsidies, more community-based care, and action on prescription drug prices.
Alex Bores
Backs a universal single-payer system via Medicare for All, expanded drug-price negotiation, drug importation, and capped insulin and out-of-pocket costs.
Jack Kennedy Schlossberg
Supports a public health-insurance option open to all Americans as a step toward Medicare for All, reversing Medicaid cuts, and extending negotiated drug prices to the privately insured.
LDCDPTCycle-to-date · FEC summary filings (cycle-to-date) — figures change as new reports are filed.
ConwayBoresSchlossbergLasherSchwalbeResearched & verified Jun 7, 2026. Compiled from verified public sources; claims that failed verification are excluded.