Candidate Profile: Kristen Browde For State Assembly

HUDSON VALLEY, NY - New Yorkers will be hitting the polls on June 23 for the primary election to choose which representatives will be on the ballot for the general election in November.

Among the local races, some residents of the Hudson Valley will be able to elect who will run for State Assembly in District 93. The district contains all of Interstate 684 in Westchester County and includes Bedford, Harrison, Lewisboro, Mount Kisco, New Castle, North Castle, North Salem, Pound Ridge and White Plains. The current officeholder, David Buchwald, is running for Congress in District 17.

In anticipation of the election, Patch asked candidates in the contested races to answer questions about their campaigns and will be publishing candidate profiles as election day draws near.

Kristen Browde is seeking the Democratic line on the ballot in November. Her opponents in the June 23 primary are Chris Burdick, Jeremiah Frei-Pearson, Mark Jaffe and Alexander Roithmayr.

The Chappaqua resident, 70, is an attorney. Browde received her JD from Fordham Law School; her BA from Cornell University. Long active in public affairs, her CV includes:

2018 - Present New York State Commission on Women and Girls
Member, Steering Committee (appointed by Governor Andrew Cuomo)
2018 - Present Westchester County Women’s Advisory Board
Member (Appointed by County Executive George Latimer)
2017 – Present New Castle Democratic Committee, District Leader
2017 – Present LGBT Bar Association of Greater New York
President, Board of Directors (elected 2018)
2017 - Present National Trans Bar Association, Co-Chair (elected 2019)
2017 – 2018 Transition Team, County Executive George Latimer
Member, Subcomittee on Human Relations/Operations
2014 – 2017 Town of New Castle, N.Y., Chappaqua, N.Y.
Secretary, Board of Ethics (2014-2017)
Member, Diversity and Outreach Committee (2017)
2007 – Present AFTRA Retirement System, New York, N.Y., Trustee
I am one of 22 Trustees on a $2.5 billion pension and health fund.
From 2007 – 2017 I also sat on the AFTRA Health System Board.
2013 – Present Chappaqua Central School District, Chappaqua, N.Y.
Member, Financial Advisory Committee
2012 – 2013 SAG-AFTRA, Los Angeles, Ca.
Member, National Board
Member, National Executive Committee
2004 – present CORNELL ALUMNI AMBASSADORS NETWORK
Chair, Northern Westchester Committee
1983 – 2012 American Federation of Television & Radio Artists (AFTRA), New York N.Y.
Board of Directors. National and New York Local
Member, National Executive Committee and Strategy Cabinet

Check out Patch's full Q&A with Kristen Browde:

Why are you seeking elective office?

I'm running to protect New York, when we know Washington won't.

I started this race talking about protecting our children and families from gun violence, about social justice and protecting our environment, talking about the work I’ve already done in Albany, bills I’ve helped get signed into law, about the relationships I’ve built over decades with key legislative leaders and with the Governor and his staff. That’s all still there.

The 20 endorsements on my website – from two State Senators to TrueBlue and Emily’s List, VoteMamas and Eleanor's Legacy to the Retail Workers Union, the New York Stagehands IATSE Local 1 and New York Laborers, tell that story plainly.

But if the months of the virus truly changed our world, what has happened since has done it yet again. The disgraceful conduct of four Minneapolis police officers has ignited anger and outrage – and we’ve seen it triggered the same way far too many times. In its aftermath, gross misconduct by police officers trying to deal with demonstrations and by demonstrators themselves has only made things worse.

We already had to manage a statewide recovery from the devastation to the budgets of every county and town, without losing sight of our priorities, something I’ve already done twice, successfully steering the AFTRA Pension System and two union health plans covering 120-thousand members through two huge recessions. It’s not pretty work, but it calls for the skill set I’ve developed. But now we have another recovery to manage, and again I'm uniquely positioned to do so.

I've been a board member of Equality New York for years, and am President of the LGBT Bar Association of Greater NY and co-chair of the National Trans Bar Association. I've worked to correct the imbalances and end the disenfranchisement of communities of color as well as the LGBTQ communities. I've worked to get vital pro-equality measures through the legislature - the Assemblyman I hope to replace is currently carrying a bill I've written. I'm endorsed by the Human Rights Campaign, Equality NY, the LGBTQ Victory Fund and LPAC - the four largest pro-equality organizations in the state.

In Albany I'll continue and advance that work to an entirely new level.

The single most pressing issue facing our nation/state/community is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

There isn't just one - indeed, the more you think about it the more "single most pressing" issues you find.

Multitasking is going to be critically important. From recovery from the explosion of anger at the open bigotry and violence of late May and early June to recovery from the pandemic and its financial aftermath, from protecting our environment and our children from gun violence, and add health care, tax relief, school funding and redistricting - and the next legislative session is going to be packed with vitally important issues, very few of which have easy solutions that one can predict today.

What I can pledge is to carefully analyze the situations, listen carefully to those affected by the issues, and work, as I have for decades, to find a consensus based solution, while never being afraid to say that in some situations there are not two or more sides - that racism is unacceptable in any form, that education must be funded to protect our children, that ghost guns must be banned for the same reason.

All I can promise is integrity, honesty and hard work. My motto is can't stop, won't stop. And I mean it. We have work to do.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

The key differentiators here are in two key areas: 1) my experience and the skills I’ve developed in steering multi billion dollar complex organizations through the financial carnage of two deep recessions, something the next group of legislators will have to do with the State, the Counties and our local and school administrations, and 2) the relationships I’ve built – appointed to positions by our County Executive, Our Governor, leaders of universities, unions and school systems. I’ve brought people with disparate interests together and helped create consensus on a path forward. Together with those leaders I have protected pensions and health care, and steered major bills through the legislature and to the Governor’s desk. On my office wall are pens used by Governor Cuomo to sign bills I championed into law. The current Assemblyman from the District, David Buchwald, is currently carrying legislation I drafted. On the Senate side the bill is sponsored by Sen. Brad Hoylman, who, along with Sen. Alessandra Biaggi, has endorsed me. Having those relationships in place walking in the door will work to the benefit of the people of this district.

It is that skill set, those relationships and that level of experience I would bring to Albany that I believe truly sets me apart. And while it’s certainly true that if elected to the New York Assembly I will be but one of 150, there’s no question about it: the other 149, will definitely know that I’m there, and making sure the priorities and interests of the residents of the 93rd District are protected.

If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community (or district or constituency)

not applicable

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform

Gun Control, reducing reliance on property taxes, improving funding for education, universal health care, redistricting

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

There are three principal examples:
1) I have worked with legislative leaders of both parties in Albany, getting legislation through and signed into law both when the Republicans controlled the Senate and since the Democrats had unified control of the levers of government. I've built relationships with key legislative leaders of both houses and Governor Cuomo, resulting in the passage of major legislation in the 2018 and 2019 sessions. Governor Cuomo and County Executive Latimer have both appointed me to multiple positions in which we've produced and passed bills protecting choice for women, improving the availability of solutions for infertile couples and protecting the civil rights of LGBTQ New Yorkers. Senators, including Pete Harckham, Brad Hoylman and Alessandra Biaggi have praised my work in floor speeches, Sen. Biaggi actually dedicating her vote to me in the passage of the groundbreaking bill known as GENDA. The fact that other legislators already know me and have worked with me will help me be able from the very start of my term to make progress, in a way that other first year legislators would have a hard time matching.

2) I was elected as a Trustee of a nationwide union health and pension fund that had gotten into deep trouble in the 2000-2001 Dotcom recession/bubble. I came into that office just as the 2007-2009 great recession hit, and helped steer both funds through the crises, with no one losing a dime of pension money or missing any health care benefits, while rebuilding the plans to the position of the second best funded in the universe of funds in the entertainment industry, with assets of more than $2.5 billion. That required an ability to manage people, expenses and budgets across a multi year horizon.

3) I've been a member of the Financial Advisory Committee to the Chappaqua Central School System for more than a decade. In that position I've been working with the administration to protect education and manage a now $119 million dollar budget while enhancing school security and trying not to lose teaching positions.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

That just because you get told it's impossible doesn't mean that it actually is impossible. If you believe in a cause, don't ever stop working for it.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

That I'm not running to make a career in politics - I'm running to make a difference in our homes and our state. When I say we need to protect New York because we know Washington won't, that is the summation of what I've been doing in appointive positions for the Governor, our County Executive and in my Town and School District. As a parent I want to leave this district an even safer place for my children to grow up and live, and for those who live her to maintain or improve their current standard of living.

I will oppose Trumpism and me-first-ism with all my being, but I'll be respectful of other viewpoints and recognize that all need to be heard - while never forgetting the priorities that we share.

Campaign website: www.KristenForNY93.com