Election Q&A: Meet NY-12 Candidate Micah Lasher

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — Democratic candidate Micah Lasher is running for Congress in District 12, which includes the Upper West Side, Upper East Side, Roosevelt Island, Hell's Kitchen, Midtown, Chelsea, NoMad, Flatiron and Union Square, in New York City's general election on Tuesday, Nov. 3.

In November, Lasher will face off against Caroline Shinkle, the Republican nominee, as well as two independent candidates, Wilneida Negron and Karen Ortiz.

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Early voting runs Oct. 24–Nov. 1, and Election Day is Nov. 3.

Ahead of the election, Patch posed several questions to Lasher about his platform, priorities, experience, and district. See his replies below.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Patch has contacted the other candidates with the same questions and will post replies as they are received. None of what Lasher said during this interview has been fact-checked.

PATCH: What neighborhood are you from?

LASHER: I am a proud, lifelong New Yorker. I was born on the East Side and grew up on the West Side. My wife Elizabeth and I are now raising our three children in the same Upper West Side community where I grew up.

PATCH: What languages do you speak?

LASHER: English.

PATCH: What's your professional and educational background?

LASHER: I am a proud product of New York City public schools and a graduate of Stuyvesant High School and New York University. I currently serve as a member of the New York State Assembly, representing the 69th District. Throughout my career in public service, I have worked at all three levels of government: as Policy Director for New York State, Chief of Staff in the New York State Attorney General's Office, Director of State Legislative Affairs for the City of New York, and as an aide to Congressman Jerry Nadler. I have also served as Chair of the Riverside Park Conservancy, as a board member for Everytown for Gun Safety and the Community Service Society, and as an adjunct professor of public policy at NYU and City College.

PATCH: Renter or owner?

LASHER: My family owns our apartment on the Upper West Side. We've been in the same building for 17 years.

PATCH: The cost of living in NYC is going up. What's your plan to make New York City more affordable?

LASHER: Everywhere we turn, New Yorkers face rising costs — from a growing housing shortage and steep rents to higher utility bills, healthcare costs, and child care expenses. As a parent raising three children here, I worry about whether my kids will be able to afford to stay in the city I've called home my entire life. That is why I've proposed a New Deal for a New Generation — a federal agenda to bring down costs for working families.

It starts with housing, the single biggest driver of our affordability crisis. In Congress, I will fight to massively expand our housing supply, repeal the Faircloth Amendment so we can build new public housing, fully fund Section 8 vouchers, and invest federal capital in Section 9 to give NYCHA the resources to make long-overdue repairs and give residents the safe, dignified homes they deserve. I've also proposed expanding down payment support for first-time homebuyers and creating an equivalent for renters to help tenants cover upfront costs like security deposits and first month's rent. I will also push to raise the federal minimum wage and index it to inflation, pass Medicare for All, and support legislation providing federal tax credits for household utility bills.

PATCH: List two ways you plan to make New York City safer.

LASHER: First, gun safety. I served on the board of Everytown for Gun Safety and helped write New York's sweeping gun safety laws, which closed background check loopholes, expanded red flag protections, and required microstamping. In Congress, I will fight for comprehensive federal laws to stop the flow of illegal guns from states with weak laws into our neighborhoods.

Second, mental health care. Building on my work designing New York State's $1 billion mental health investment plan — which brought 1,000 inpatient psychiatric beds online and funded 3,500 supportive housing units — I will work to reform federal Medicaid restrictions that limit funding for acute psychiatric care. At the local level, I will work directly with local precincts, district attorneys, and community groups to address crime hotspots, make our subways safer, redesign streets for pedestrians and cyclists, and address quality-of-life concerns.

PATCH: What changes would you support to ICE's authority and funding, and how would those priorities guide your votes in Congress?

LASHER: We must abolish ICE and end the campaign of terror and violence that the Trump administration has waged against our immigrant communities. I will support Democratic efforts in Congress to withhold Department of Homeland Security funding until ICE agents are required to obtain judicial warrants, show identification, and stay out of sensitive locations.

Protecting immigrant communities has been at the heart of my work in the State Assembly, where I authored laws to protect New Yorkers from warrantless ICE arrests at sensitive locations like schools, houses of worship, and healthcare facilities, and to allow New Yorkers to hold individual ICE agents legally accountable in state courts. In Congress, I will fight for an immigration system built on due process and a clear pathway to citizenship.

PATCH: What type of relationship will you have with the Trump administration?

LASHER: My relationship with the Trump administration will be one of fierce, principled, and strategic opposition. As the New York State Assembly's most outspoken voice for using state power to fight back against this administration — including writing legislation to protect immigrant communities from ICE and leading efforts to allow mid-decade redistricting — I will bring that same approach to Washington.

As I've laid out in my Project 2026 plan, my strategy in Congress centers on three pillars: using House rules and procedures to throw sand in the gears of the Republican agenda; conducting rigorous congressional oversight, backed by subpoena power, to hold administration officials and corporate bad actors accountable; and passing laws that protect civil liberties, public education, and the environment from executive overreach.

I've spent my career getting results at every level of government, and I know that progress often depends on finding common ground. I will work with anyone who is serious about getting things done for New Yorkers.

PATCH: What sets you apart from the other candidate(s)?

LASHER: I bring deep experience at every level of government and a proven track record of getting big things done. Over two decades in public service, I have authored the FAIR Business Practices Act, the first major update to New York's consumer protection laws in over 40 years; crafted post-Dobbs legislation to protect abortion access and providers; designed the state's $1 billion mental health plan; helped double income eligibility for child care assistance; and helped enact landmark gun safety laws.

I've lived in the 12th Congressional District for nearly my entire life. I know what makes it extraordinary, and I'll fight to protect not just the needs of the district, but its values.

For questions, email Miranda.Levingston@Patch.com.