DSA-Backed Candidates Sweep Queens Primaries, Claire Valdez Wins Seventh Congressional District

Democratic Socialists of America (DSA)-backed candidates swept primary races across Queens on Tuesday, with Claire Valdez set to win the Democratic contest for New York’s Seventh Congressional District by 56 percent, defeating Antonio Reynoso, Vichal Kumar, and Julie Won.

The Queens Chronicle said Valdez pulled out a victory in the crowded Democratic contest for the Seventh Congressional District, and it reported that she defeated three fellow competitors, most notably Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, who was backed by the Working Families Party, the Queens Democrats and incumbent U.S. Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D-Brooklyn, Queens) herself.

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In the same Queens slate, Aber Kawas won the Democratic nomination for a western Queens state Senate district with 60 percent of the vote against Assemblyman Steven Raga, and the Queens Chronicle also said Kawas defeated a sitting Assembly member in the primary for an open state Senate seat.

Queens Daily Eagle described the broader sweep as DSA candidates winning races for Congress, the State Senate and State Assembly, and it said Valdez was set to succeed retiring Rep. Nydia Velázquez in the 7th Congressional District in November.

The Queens Daily Eagle also reported that Kawas becomes the first Palestinian American and first Muslim woman elected to New York State office, while the Queens Chronicle said Mamdani’s DSA hopefuls were still riding momentum after his mayoral win with 50.4 percent of the vote.

Valdez framed her primary win as a test of political momentum, telling supporters in a social media post Tuesday night, “When we fight, we win,” while sharing a video with incumbent Assemblymember Diana Moreno (D-Astoria), Aber Kawas, David Orkin and Samantha Kattan.

The Queens Chronicle also quoted Valdez’s message of solidarity, adding “Love you all. Solidarity forever.”

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In the same primary cycle, Queens Daily Eagle quoted Kawas after her win, saying, “What this group right here is going to do is we are going to sustain the ways of the left,” and it added that she spoke about “Dignity for working class communities, for people who toil at construction sites, in street cars, in taxi cabs, in classrooms.”

Queens Daily Eagle also included a response from Steven Raga, who said in a campaign statement sent Wednesday morning, “This election was hard fought, but it was fought on principle, not personalities,” and it argued that progressives should resolve differences “through competing ideas about how we build power and how we fight on behalf of everyday New Yorkers.”

The New York Post said the DSA was poised to hit Albany with a “red wave” after the state primary elections, asserting that Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s DSA comrades would hold four seats in the 63-seat state Senate and 10 districts in the 150-seat state Assembly if Tuesday’s results hold.

The New York Post also claimed that three incumbent Democrats in Brooklyn and Queens’ “commie corridor” lost to DSA insurgents, naming Assemblyman Erik Dilan (D-Brooklyn), Assemblywoman Stefani Zinerman (D-Brooklyn) and Assemblywoman Jenifer Rajkumar (D-Brooklyn) as among those defeated.

Queens Daily Eagle said the DSA sweep was powered by Mamdani’s support and the political energy he generated a year ago, and it described Valdez’s early celebration as she picked up 56 percent of the vote with around 92 percent of ballots counted an hour after polls closed.

In the Queens Chronicle’s race-by-race results, it reported that 14th Congressional District incumbent Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez won the Democratic nod over Felipe Garcia and Marty Dolan with 87 percent, and it said State Senate District 15 incumbent Joe Addabbo Jr. defeated Albert Baldeo with 74 percent.

The Queens Chronicle also reported that the Democratic contest for New York’s Seventh Congressional District was set to replace Nydia Velázquez, while the New York Post framed the broader consequence as DSA candidates poised to challenge incumbent and establishment Democrats across state legislative primary races.