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Portrait of Luis R. SepúlvedaPhoto: nysenate.gov

NY · Officeholder

Luis R. Sepúlveda

DState Senator · District 32

On the ballot Nov 3, 2026: NY State Senate · District 32

Biography

Luis Sepúlveda is the Democratic nominee for re-election to New York State Senate District 32 in the central Bronx. An attorney, he served three terms in the State Assembly before winning an April 2018 special election to the Senate, where he chairs the Judiciary and Cities 1 committees. He is unopposed in the general election.[1][2][3][4]

Sepúlveda was born in Brooklyn on February 11, 1964, according to Wikipedia, and a May 2026 El Diario NY profile reports that he grew up in the Los Sures neighborhood of Brooklyn.[4][8] He earned a bachelor's degree and, in 1991, a J.D. from Hofstra University and its Maurice A. Deane School of Law; his official biography describes him as one of two Latinx attorneys in the New York State Legislature.[2][3][4] He worked as an attorney at Community Law Practice and as an adjunct professor at Mercy College.[2][3]

Sepúlveda lost the 2010 Democratic primary for the 87th Assembly District to incumbent Peter M. Rivera, then won the seat in 2012 after Rivera retired.[4] He served three terms as Assemblymember for the 87th District (2013-2018), including on the Aging, Agriculture, Banks, Correction, Housing, and Mental Hygiene committees.[2][3][4] In April 2018 he won the special election to the 32nd Senate District, succeeding Rubén Díaz Sr., who left to join the New York City Council.[3][4]

As a state senator, Sepúlveda helped lead the 2019 criminal-justice reforms ending cash bail for most misdemeanors and nonviolent felonies and establishing new discovery and speedy-trial rules, and he is lead sponsor of the Jose Peralta DREAM Act and the Green Light Law.[3] On January 12, 2021, he was arrested on a charge of criminal obstruction of breathing after his wife alleged he had choked her during a domestic dispute; he and his wife each accused the other of assault, and his lawyer called her claim false. Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins removed him as chair of the Crime Victims, Crime and Correction Committee and stripped his other committee assignments. The Bronx District Attorney's office dropped all charges on October 4, 2021, stating it could not meet the burden of proof and that his wife did not wish to testify against him.[2][5][6][7]

Sepúlveda chairs the Senate Judiciary Committee (a role Wikipedia dates to January 2026), and El Diario reports he is the first Latino and Puerto Rican to hold that chair. He also chairs the Select Majority Task Force on Diversity in the Judiciary.[3][4][8] According to his official biography, in 2022 he became the first New York State senator granted Dominican citizenship.[3]

  1. 1.New York State Senate District 32 · Ballotpedia · 2026-09-25 Reference
  2. 2.Luis Sepúlveda (New York) · Ballotpedia · 2026-09-25 Reference
  3. 3.About Luis R. Sepúlveda · NYSenate.gov Official record
  4. 4.Luis R. Sepúlveda · Wikipedia · 2026-10-21 Reference
  5. 5.NY state Sen. Sepúlveda accused of choking wife · The Associated Press (via FOX 5 New York) · 2021-01-12 News report
  6. 6.State Sen. Luis Sepúlveda expected to chair a committee again · City & State New York · 2021-10-06 News report
  7. 7.Charges Dropped against Sen. Sepúlveda in DV Case; Witness Does Not Wish to Testify · Norwood News · 2021-10-04 News report
  8. 8.Senador de NY Luis Sepúlveda: los puertorriqueños le abrieron las puertas políticas a otros hispanos en el estado · El Diario NY · 2026-05-28 News report

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

On the ballot

Full candidate research ›NY State Senate · District 32 ›

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 1 of 638 party-divided votes on file.

  • Repeals certain provisions regarding adoption of new or revised city charter proposed by charter commission which limit submission of questions to city's electors

    What it does: Repeals certain provisions regarding the adoption of a new or revised city charter proposed by a charter commission which limits the submission of questions to a city's qualified electors; eliminates the rule that pro…

    Voted no · most Democrats voted yes · Democrats 31–6, Republicans 3–18

    Jun 12, 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.