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Portrait of Cordell ClearePhoto: nysenate.gov

NY · Officeholder

Cordell Cleare

DState Senator · District 30

On the ballot Nov 3, 2026: NY State Senate · District 30

Biography

Cordell Cleare is the Democratic and Working Families Party nominee for re-election to New York State Senate District 30, which covers Harlem, East Harlem, and adjoining Manhattan neighborhoods. A Harlem native, she was a tenant organizer, school board leader and longtime chief of staff to State Senator Bill Perkins before winning a 2021 special election to the seat. She chairs the Senate Aging Committee and is unopposed in 2026.[1][2][3]

Cleare was raised in Harlem, where, according to her official biography, her family has lived for four generations. She attended New York City public schools, including Brooklyn Technical High School.[3] She worked as a tenant organizer and chaired the New York City Coalition to End Lead Poisoning, whose work her official biography credits with shaping the city's Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Act (Local Law 1 of 2004).[3] She also served as Board President of Community School District 3, which covers the Upper West Side and Central Harlem, and then as President of its Community Education Council.[3]

Beginning in 1997, Cleare served as chief of staff to Bill Perkins during his time on the New York City Council and in the State Senate.[2][3] She was also a Democratic District Leader representing parts of East and Central Harlem and co-founded the Michelle Obama Democratic Club; per her official biography, she was among the first Democratic Party officials in New York State to support Barack Obama's 2008 presidential campaign.[3] In the June 2021 Democratic primary for New York City Council she placed fourth of 14 candidates, according to her official biography.[3]

Cleare won the Democratic nomination through the County Committee and then a November 2, 2021 special election for the State Senate seat vacated when Brian Benjamin was appointed Lieutenant Governor, taking about 89% of the vote (88.6% per Ballotpedia). She took office on November 30, 2021, and was re-elected in 2022 and 2024.[1][2][3] In the Senate she sits on committees including Education, Housing, Construction and Community Development, Social Services, and Investigations and Government Operations, in addition to chairing Aging.[2][3] According to her official biography, during the COVID-19 pandemic she ran a food pantry operation, distributed personal protective equipment, and registered voters; the biography lists her as a 2026 Women of Distinction honoree and a 2026 New York State Senate Veterans' Hall of Fame honoree.[3]

  1. 1.New York State Senate District 30 · Ballotpedia · 2026-09-25 Reference
  2. 2.Cordell Cleare · Ballotpedia · 2026-09-25 Reference
  3. 3.About Cordell Cleare · NYSenate.gov Official record

Researched from the cited sources on 2026-10-21.

On the ballot

Full candidate research ›NY State Senate · District 30 ›

Votes by issue

Their recorded votes on bills that divided the chamber (unanimous votes left out), grouped by topic. A bill can sit under more than one topic. "With" and "against" compare each vote with how most Democrats voted. How topics are assigned

Where they stood out

Voted against most of their party on 2 of 681 party-divided votes on file.

  • Relates to requirements for the provision of medication for medical aid in dying

    What it does: Relates to requirements for medical professionals and health care facilities that provide medication to patients for medical aid in dying; extends the initial effectiveness of certain provisions relating thereto.

    Voted no · most Democrats voted yes · Democrats 33–6, Republicans 0–22

    Feb 4, 2026Official record ↗

  • Relates to the medical aid in dying act

    What it does: Relates to the medical aid in dying act; relates to a terminally ill patient's request for and use of medication for medical aid in dying.

    Voted no · most Democrats voted yes · Democrats 34–6, Republicans 0–21

    Jun 9, 2025Official record ↗

How this is counted

Their votes on the most contested roll calls

The votes in their chamber that came out closest and most divided by party, among those they voted on. How we rank

See all their split votes

Substantive votes concern legislation or nominations; procedural votes concern how the chamber considers them. A Yes vote applies to the motion shown, which may not be final passage.

A10030-B · NY SENATE

Requires health insurers to provide coverage for speech therapy for stuttering

YesVOTED

Requires health insurers to provide coverage for speech therapy for stuttering.

Official summary — read the bill text ↗
Passed Senate 58–2·Substantive·Jun 4, 2026Roll call ↗
A10158 · NY SENATE

Extends limitations on the shift between classes of taxable property in the town of Clarkstown, county of Rockland

YesVOTED

Extends limitations on the shift between classes of taxable property in the town of Clarkstown, county of Rockland for an additional year for 2026-2027.

Official summary — read the bill text ↗
Passed Senate 59–1·Substantive·Jun 4, 2026Roll call ↗
A10184 · NY SENATE

Limiting the shift between classes of taxable property in the town of Haverstraw, county of Rockland

YesVOTED

Relates to limiting the shift between classes of taxable property in the town of Haverstraw, county of Rockland for 2026-2027.

Official summary — read the bill text ↗
Passed Senate 58–2·Substantive·Jun 4, 2026Roll call ↗
A10312-A · NY SENATE

Relates to information that residential health care facilities are required to disclose to residents and their families

YesVOTED

Relates to information that residential health care facilities are required to separately disclose to residents and their families; requires such information to be posted on the residential health care facility's website.

Official summary — read the bill text ↗
Passed Senate 39–21·Substantive·Jun 4, 2026Roll call ↗
A10390-A · NY SENATE

Establishes a school speed zone camera demonstration program in the city of Poughkeepsie

YesVOTED

Establishes a school speed zone camera demonstration program in the city of Poughkeepsie; repeals authorization of program December 31, 2030.

Official summary — read the bill text ↗
Passed Senate 59–1·Substantive·Jun 4, 2026Roll call ↗
A10391 · NY SENATE

Relates to adjudications and owner liability for a violation of traffic-control signal indications in the city of Poughkeepsie

YesVOTED

Relates to adjudications and owner liability for a violation of traffic-control signal indications in the city of Poughkeepsie.

Official summary — read the bill text ↗
Passed Senate 59–1·Substantive·Jun 4, 2026Roll call ↗
A10411-A · NY SENATE

Prohibits motor vehicle manufacturers and dealers from charging a subscription fee for certain functions of a motor vehicle after the vehicle is sold

YesVOTED

Prohibits motor vehicle manufacturers and dealers from charging a subscription fee for certain functions of a motor vehicle after the vehicle is sold; provides that any manufacturer, dealer, or agent of a manufacturer or dealer that fails to comply with such requirements shall be assessed a civil penalty not to exceed two hundred fifty dollars per point of sale for each violation.

Official summary — read the bill text ↗
Passed Senate 57–3·Substantive·Jun 4, 2026Roll call ↗
A10478 · NY SENATE

Relates to the Trustees of the Freeholders and Commonalty of the town of Southampton

YesVOTED

Increases the term of office from two years to four years for the Trustees of the Freeholders and Commonalty of the town of Southampton, county of Suffolk, and providing for the staggering of such terms of office.

Official summary — read the bill text ↗
Passed Senate 58–2·Substantive·Jun 4, 2026Roll call ↗
A10922 · NY SENATE

Extends certain provisions relating to the sale, issuance and refund of bonds and notes of New York city

YesVOTED

Extends certain provisions relating to the sale of bonds and notes of the city of New York, the issuance of bonds or notes with variable rates of interest, interest rate exchange agreements of the city of New York, the refunding of bonds, and the down payment for projects financed by bonds; extends the New York state financial emergency act for the city of New York; makes further amendments relating to the effectiveness thereof.

Official summary — read the bill text ↗
Passed Senate 56–4·Substantive·Jun 4, 2026Roll call ↗
A11030-A · NY SENATE

Requires utility corporations and municipalities to notify property owners prior to beginning any scheduled non-emergency construction or other work

YesVOTED

Requires a utility corporation or municipality to notify property owners at least five business days prior to beginning any non-emergency construction or other work that will result in a planned interruption of a customer's property; requires notice to include, but not be limited to, a description of the work to be performed, the expected duration of such work, the location of such work, and the contact information for the utility performing such work; exempts cases where a natural or man-made disaster or state of emergency occurs.

Official summary — read the bill text ↗
Passed Senate 59–1·Substantive·Jun 4, 2026Roll call ↗

Showing 10 of 2037 votes in this collection. Coverage may be incomplete; each entry links to the official record.