Socialists Aim for Assembly Seat in Kathy Hochul’s Backyard
It’s not just New York City: socialists are hoping to build their legislative bloc across the state. That includes the 149th District, where Adam Bojak is hoping to win a state assembly seat in Kathy Hochul’s backyard.
Buffalo DSA member Adam Bojak’s assembly campaign is an effort to build the bloc far outside of DSA’s New York City stronghold. (Teo David / Adam Bojak for Assembly)
This election cycle, fresh off Zohran Mamdani’s victory in the mayoral race, the New York City chapter of Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) is running its largest-ever slate of legislative insurgents. But DSA chapters in other parts of the state are hoping to help build the socialist bloc in the New York State Legislature.
Adam Bojak is an attorney and Buffalo DSA member running for state assembly in the 149th District in Western New York — an area once partially represented by Gov. Kathy Hochul in Congress. In addition to being endorsed by Buffalo DSA, New York City DSA, and national DSA, Bojak’s campaign has garnered support from several labor unions and progressive and tenant advocacy groups.
Bojak previously ran for the seat in 2020 and lost. The seat is once again open, and the political environment has changed. Driven by a cost-of-living crisis, chaos caused by Donald Trump’s authoritarian immigration enforcement, and an ascendant DSA presence in the state, Bojak believes that voters are eager for something new. Jacobin recently sat down with Bojak to discuss what electing a democratic socialist in Kathy Hochul’s backyard would mean for Western New York and for the movement.
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