Micah Lasher
Won the June 23 Democratic primary in an eight-candidate field
Micah Lasher is a sitting New York State Assembly member representing District 69 on Manhattan's Upper West Side, elected in 2024. Before the Assembly, he worked in senior policy roles for the State of New York, the New York Attorney General, New York City, and U.S. Rep. Jerry Nadler. He won a crowded Democratic primary for the open NY-12 seat.[1][2]
Floor votes in Albany
- Didn't voteProvides that a microbusiness licensee authorized to conduct retail sales may serve as a processor and cultivator for purposes of cannabis showcase event permits · S10113 · Passed Assembly 88–53 · 2026-06-05 official record ↗Provides that a microbusiness licensee authorized to conduct retail sales may serve as a processor and cultivator for purposes of cannabis showcase event permits.
- Didn't voteRelates to granting employees access to personnel records · S3460 · Passed Assembly 92–49 · 2026-05-19 official record ↗Grants employees access to personnel records; requires notice of negative information in such records and an opportunity for a review; permits employee to include certain information in personnel records.
Votes on landmark laws since 2019, plus 2026 roll calls where at least five members voted on the losing side — read from the legislature’s official records.
On the record — official actions
- billAs a New York State Assembly member, sponsored legislation empowering the state Attorney General to take up enforcement work of federal agencies (such as the CFPB, FTC, and DOJ) that are shut down or restricted by the Trump administration.[3]
- billIntroduced a state constitutional amendment that would allow New York to redraw its congressional district lines mid-decade if another state redraws its lines first.[3]
- billWrote New York's RECOURSE Act, allowing the state to withhold funds it owes the federal government if the federal government illegally withholds funds from New York, and the Tariff Transparency Act, requiring disclosure of tariffs' effect on automobile prices.[3]
- billWrote legislation to guarantee continued access to the COVID-19 vaccine in New York State; the proposal was incorporated into Governor Hochul's 2026 budget.[3]
- billSponsored legislation to protect tenants and create the state's first public revolving loan fund for mixed-income housing, and wrote the Consumer Grocery Pricing Fairness Act aimed at small and independent grocers.[3]
- actionAs a senior state and city policy aide before his Assembly election, worked on New York's gun-safety laws passed after the Buffalo and Uvalde shootings, the state's post-Dobbs abortion-provider protection law, indexing the state minimum wage to inflation, and a $1 billion mental-health investment plan.[2]
Positions on the issues
- SupportsExpand public health coverage
Campaign platform lists Medicare for All among his priorities, alongside opposition to Republican-led cuts to the Affordable Care Act.[1]
“repeal Trump's tax breaks for the rich, pass Medicare for All, raise the minimum wage, massively expand childcare, replace the crazy tariffs with policies that protect American workers”
- SupportsRaise taxes on high earners or corporations
Wants to repeal the 2017 Trump tax cuts for high earners and says billionaires should pay more.[3]
- OpposesBroad tariffs on imported goods
Opposes the Trump administration's broad tariffs, saying they raise costs for consumers and businesses, and wrote a state Tariff Transparency Act as an Assembly member to disclose tariffs' effect on automobile prices.[1][3]
- OpposesExpand immigration enforcement and deportations
Supports abolishing ICE in its current form and backs the Restoring Access to Detainees Act to guarantee due process, access to lawyers, and family contact for detained immigrants.[3]
- SupportsRaise the minimum wage
Wants to raise the federal minimum wage and index it to inflation, following work in the Assembly to index New York's minimum wage.[3]
- SupportsLoosen zoning rules to build more housing
Wants to expand housing tax credits, increase rental assistance funding, and use federal dollars to spur pro-housing state and local policy.[3]
- SupportsStricter gun laws
Served on the board of national gun-safety group Everytown and, according to his campaign, played a leading role in writing New York's gun-safety laws passed after the Buffalo and Uvalde mass shootings.[1][2]
In their words — priorities
- Says Democrats in Congress need to use every procedural tool available to oppose the Trump administration and, if Democrats retake the House, pursue aggressive oversight of ICE, tariffs, and the Justice Department.[3]
- Wants to expand federal investment in child care and housing tax credits, and to raise the federal minimum wage and index it to inflation.[3]
- Says immigration enforcement under the Trump administration has denied due process to immigrants and wants Congress to support the Restoring Access to Detainees Act and other due-process protections.[3]
- Says incumbent Democrats have not done enough to fight the Trump administration's agenda and that his campaign is about bringing more fight to Washington.[1]
Background
- Earned a bachelor's degree in sociology from New York University.[1]
- Worked as an aide to U.S. Rep. Jerry Nadler, Director of State Legislative Affairs for New York City, Chief of Staff to the New York State Attorney General, and Director of Policy for the State of New York before his election to the Assembly.[2]
- Elected to the New York State Assembly in 2024, representing District 69 on the Upper West Side.[2]
- Served for ten years on the board of the Riverside Park Conservancy, including as chair from 2019 to 2024, and served on the boards of the national gun-safety group Everytown and the anti-poverty group Community Service Society.[2]
Campaign money
Raised $3.3M · spent $2.2M · $1.1M cash on hand (through 2026-06-30) FEC filing ↗