U.S. Rep. Nydia Velázquez has endorsed Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso to succeed her in Congress, breaking with Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who last week endorsed democratic socialist Assembly Member Claire Valdez in the race.
Velázquez, who announced last November that she would not seek reelection in the 7th Congressional District after three decades in office, touted Reynoso’s “deep connections” to the district in her official announcement Thursday afternoon, which she said would be required to take on ICE and make New York City more affordable.
It marks the third time in 24 hours that Velázquez has backed a traditional progressive candidate over a candidate backed by the New York City chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) after she endorsed Rana Abdelhamid over DSA-backed Diana Moreno in the 36th Assembly District and Brian Romero over the DSA-backed Aber Kawas in the 34th District.
Valdez has not yet been officially endorsed by the DSA but is widely expected to pick up the endorsement after the party held a candidate forum Wednesday night.
Announcing her endorsement on Thursday, Velázquez described Reynoso as a “homegrown progressive leader,” appearing to take shots at Valdez, who moved to New York City from Lubbock, Texas in 2015.
“Antonio understands the struggles of working families because he has lived them, and he has delivered real change for our communities,” Velázquez said in a statement announcing the endorsement.
She added that Reynoso will take on President Donald Trump “unapologetically,” fight to abolish ICE and stand up for Puerto Rican self-determination if he is elected to Congress.
“Antonio is the leader this moment demands: courageous, progressive, and grounded in lived experience. As I pass the torch to the next generation, I ask New Yorkers to support him,” Velázquez added.
Velázquez first announced her endorsement in an interview with the New York Times on Thursday, where she fired a warning shot at Mamdani for endorsing Valdez in her district. Velázquez, who was the first Congress Member to endorse Mamdani’s mayoral bid, said the Mayor had risked causing a split in the coalition that helped him win election last year.
She said primaries can provide a “distraction” to Mamdani’s own agenda, adding that his decision to endorse in the upcoming NY-7 open primary could risk intra-party fights among the coalition he needs to govern effectively.
She also told the New York Times that she did not initially plan to endorse in the race to succeed her because she assumed a lawmaker that she had personally mentored, including Reynoso, would win easily once they launched their campaign. However, she said Mamdani’s endorsement of Valdez last Friday forced her hand, describing the race to succeed her in the 7th Congressional District as “personal.”
Mamdani has previously described Velázquez as an “inspiration,” and called her a “titan” when she endorsed him last June.
Endorsing Valdez last week, Mamdani described the western Queens Assembly Member as someone who will “stand with workers at every single opportunity.”
The Mayor also noted that Valdez was the only elected official to appear at the launch event of his mayoral campaign in October 2024.
“Standing with me then took courage,” Mamdani said. “It took belief that people who do an honest day’s work deserve to come home and stay in their home.”
However, Valdez and Reynoso are ideologically aligned on a number of key policy issues; both are prominent labor organizers and both have described Israel’s actions in Palestine as a “genocide.” Valdez, who has been in elected office for just under 12 months, is a movement socialist who had made her experience as a labor organizer central to her campaign, while Reynoso boasts more than a decade of experience in city politics.
Velázquez appeared to allude to that experience while speaking to the New York Times, stating that she has endorsed Reynoso because she knows him. She added that she doesn’t “really know” Valdez and said Reynoso is the only candidate in the race who has delivered results for their community.
Velázquez’s office did not respond to a request for comment. She is expected to join Reynoso at an endorsement event in Brooklyn this Saturday.
Reynoso, meanwhile, described Velázquez’s endorsement as the “honor of a lifetime.”
“For decades, Nydia has fought relentlessly for our community in Washington, and that’s exactly what I will do in Congress,” Reynoso said in a statement. “We need more selfless leaders like her who put working people first. I’m committed to carrying her torch forward from Day One, fighting for the working class, building an economy that works for everyone, not the oligarchs, and standing up to Trump and his House Republican enablers.”
Reynoso has also scooped endorsements from a variety of progressive City Council Members, while Public Advocate Jumaane Williams and Make the Road Action, the political arm of influential immigrant non-profit Make the Road New York, have also endorsed his campaign.
Valdez, on the other hand, has picked up support from Mamdani and the United Auto Workers Union and is expected to pick up the DSA endorsement.
This story first appeared on Brooklyn Paper’s sister site QNS.
