Frank Jereis, 25, won a major double-digit victory in the Democratic primary for Yonkers’ State Assembly district, defeating Jeannette Garcia, 38. The race marked Jereis’ first run for elected office, and his campaign emphasized a strong local organizing effort rooted in labor support, community members, and the Yonkers Democratic Party. Frank Jereis’ platform zeroed in on affordability, school funding, and supporting working families and organized labor.
Jereis, who serves as Executive Director of the Yonkers Democratic Committee and Chief of Staff to Assemblymember Nader Sayegh, entered the race with deep community ties and long history with the Yonkers Democratic Party. His campaign built a broad coalition that included all major labor unions in the region, Mayor Mike Spano, and a wide range of Yonkers-based elected officials and political organizations. The broad coalition coupled with Jereis’ relentless personal campaigning lead to this mandate.
Garcia, meanwhile, ran a well-funded and high-profile challenge. She was backed by former Congressman Jamaal Bowman, City Council President Lakisha Collins-Bellamy, Councilwoman Corazon Pineda-Isaac, several Bronx Assemblymembers, and the Working Families Party, among other progressive organizations. Her campaign also received six figures in public matching funds, giving her significant financial resources.
Despite that support, Garcia was unable to translate endorsements and funding into support at the local level with Yonkers Democratic Voters. In addition, despite Garcia’s alleged history as a Union organizer, labor unions rallied behind Frank Jereis early in the race including some of Garcia’s current or former employers.
We look forward to providing more in-depth commentary on this historic victory in Yonkers. However, the race for this Assembly District now turns to November in what is expected to be a competitive race.
