Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., today endorsed New York State Assembly Member Micah Lasher, his former longtime aide, in the crowded House primary to serve as the congressman's successor in the deep blue Manhattan-area district.
"I’m proud and excited to endorse @micahlasher for Congress," Nadler said in a post to X. "He’ll bring a sense of urgency, creativity, and fearlessness to Washington."
Lasher said in a post to X that "this endorsement means so much to me."
"Jerry Nadler has set an incredibly high bar for decades for smart, principled, progressive leadership on issue after issue," he continued. "I’m honored beyond words to have his support."
Lasher has received endorsements from a string of prominent New York politicians, including New York City Comptroller Mark Levine, New York City Council Member Gale Brewer and state Sen. Brian Kavanagh.
Nadler's backing sets up what are expected to be dueling endorsements for two of the candidates in the Democratic field, with former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., planning to endorse Jack Schlossberg, the grandson of President John F. Kennedy, in the primary, according to a source familiar with the matter.
In an endorsement video, Nadler laid out Lasher's credentials on issues including protecting consumers, fighting gun violence and investing in mental health care. Nadler also referred to Lasher's ability to counter President Donald Trump's agenda, saying the state Assembly member "emerged as New York's protector in chief against all things Trump."
"No other candidate in the race comes close to the depth and breadth of Micah's record, not just on one issue, but across the many fronts where Democrats need to be stronger and smarter than ever," Nadler said in the video.
In an interview with The New York Times, which first reported Nadler's endorsement, the congressman painted Schlossberg as a candidate without the necessary experience to be a congressman. George Conway, a conservative Trump critic whose former wife, Kellyanne Conway, was a senior aide to Trump in his first administration, is running for the seat as a Democrat. Nadler told The New York Times that he did not believe New Yorkers would vote for a conservative.
Nadler announced in September that he would not seek re-election, capping off his decades-long career representing the Manhattan-area district.
