NY socialists touch base on successes, failures of session

New York’s Socialists in Office held a meeting at the end of July with other local Democratic Socialists of America members to discuss their successes – and failures – in the past legislative session. With eight members now between the state Senate and Assembly, the informal caucus represents a small but increasingly influential bloc of votes among the Democratic supermajorities in the state Legislature. 

According to meeting notes shared with DSA members in New York, lawmakers touted a number of victories, including the state budget’s incorporation of the Build Public Renewables Act, the All Electric Buildings Act and parts of the Fix the MTA plan. They also celebrated defeating the nomination of Justice Hector LaSalle to lead the Court of Appeals and killing the vote for Justin Driscoll’s confirmation as CEO of the New York Power Authority. (Driscoll still serves in an acting capacity in the position, and the governor has not recommended anyone new after the state Senate declined to hold a vote on his nomination.)

The socialist lawmakers attributed their victories in part to more frequent meetings, conversations and check-ins among both the elected and non-elected members. That included what they called a “mass call” with DSA members, and a memo that the DSA’s Citywide Leadership Committee sent to socialist elected officials advising them on the organization’s priorities for the state budget. Looking at where members felt they could improve, meeting attendees discussed the need to refine legislative priorities and strategies to maximize clear and unified messaging among the Socialists in Office.

What’s next on the socialist agenda? Assembly Member Zohran Mamdani specifically mentioned getting air conditioners into classrooms as a way of making quality of life issues – the type not typically associated with the socialist movement – explicitly socialist priorities moving forward.