Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso Tuesday won the endorsement of Public Advocate Jumaane Williams in the race for the congressional seat left open by the impending retirement of Rep. Nydia Velazquez, the Daily News has learned.
“Antonio has been a trusted ally of mine and the entire progressive movement, and he knows how to deliver,” Williams said in a statement that name-checked Reynoso’s opposition to outgoing Mayor Adams and ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo. “He is immensely prepared to continue Velazquez’s legacy.”
The endorsement could give Reynoso an important boost with left-leaning voters in what is expected to be a wide open Democratic primary fight in the heavily Latino district that stretches from western Queens to northern Brooklyn.
Reynoso said he is “deeply honored to have the endorsement of this progressive champion.”
“We will work tirelessly to ensure that the voices of the people in New York’s 7th congressional district are heard as we hold Trump and Republicans accountable for terrorizing our communities with ICE while giving tax breaks to billionaires,” he said.
Reynoso, who is serving his second term as Brooklyn Borough President, is the only major candidate to throw his hat in the ring for the seat that has been held by Velazquez for more than three decades.
The son of Dominican immigrants from Williamsburg, Reynoso has been lining up support among establishment figures in the NY-07 district but likely needs to shore up his left wing to win.
Williams is popular with progressives and ran losing insurgent races for lieutenant governor in 2018 and for governor in 2022, but he is from East New York, relatively far from the NY-07 district.
Assemblywoman Claire Valdez and Councilwoman Tiffany Caban are among the most prominent local officials said to be considering entering the race. State Sen. Julia Salazar announced she won’t be running.
Valdez and Caban, both of whom are Puerto Rican, could vie for support from the Democratic Socialists of America, which would carry significant weight in one of the deepest-blue districts in the nation.
The endorsements that will carry the most weight in the race will be that of Velazquez herself, Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, along with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who represents a neighboring congressional district.
Velazquez, 72, plans to serve out the remainder of her 16th term in office but says she won’t run for reelection in 2026. Fondly dubbed “La Luchadora,” or the fighter, the trailblazing lawmaker was the first Puerto Rican-born woman to serve in Congress.
