UAW Region 9A’s endorsement of Lander over one of the wealthiest members of Congress signals that pro-labor voting records alone no longer guarantee labor’s backing.
Brad Lander speaks during his campaign launch event at Nitehawk Cinema on December 10, 2025, in New York City.
(Andres Kudacki / Getty Images)
This morning, United Auto Workers Region 9A endorsed former New York City comptroller and City Council member Brad Lander for New York’s 10th Congressional District.
“We have known and worked with Brad for years and know he walks the walk,” UAW Region 9A Director Brandon Mancilla explained. “In every role he’s served, he’s called out bad bosses, walked picket lines with all our locals, and leveraged the tools of his office to fight for workers. From housing to workers’ rights, we know Brad will be a steadfast champion for working people in Congress.”
Region 9A has established itself as a left-wing voice in the region. Representing more than 50,000 workers in the greater New York City area, New England, and Puerto Rico, the regional body has distinguished itself by backing socialist and progressives early in races, including against incumbent Democrats. Empowered by a revamped endorsement process and militant leadership locally and nationally, the union has not shied away from political risks. Region 9A previously co-endorsed Lander in his recent mayoral bid, alongside then-longshot democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani and Jessica Ramos. Now it will work in America’s third-wealthiest congressional district to unseat Representative Dan Goldman.
“I’m deeply grateful to have the support of my longtime allies at UAW Region 9A, some of the best organizers in the country. They are making a powerful statement that working people don’t want billionaires buying seats in Congress,” Lander said. “For decades, I’ve worked with labor to ensure that workers don’t [get] screwed. In Congress, I’ll work with the UAW and other labor unions to ensure that workers don’t get screwed by AI, by app companies, or by billionaire bosses.”
Current Issue
Lander’s labor bona fides date back to his time on the City Council. In the 2010s, during the rise of the gig economy, he helped pass legislation that established just-cause protections for the fast-food industry, ended erratic scheduling for fast-food and retail workers, and created the nation’s first guaranteed living wage for rideshare drivers.
As comptroller—an independent municipal office tasked with overseeing the fiscal health of the city—Lander found creative ways to navigate the turbulence of Wall Street and expanded the scope of the office by establishing a “workers’ rights team” within the Bureau of Labor Law. “As comptroller, I recovered over $20 million for workers whose bosses cheated them out of the prevailing wages they were owed, and made sure the companies we invested in respected the rights of their workers to organize.”
Lander also touts endorsements from socialists like Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders as well as progressives like Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren and the New York Working Families Party, which should carry weight in NY-10, one of the country’s Democratic strongholds.
In 2022, the district was redrawn to include parts of Lower Manhattan, South Brooklyn, and the brownstone neighborhoods of Brooklyn, including Lander’s Park Slope. The race that Goldman won, making the Levi Strauss heir one of the 10 wealthiest members of Congress, is now infamous among New York progressives—an example of what not to do when trying to secure a favorable district against a moderate candidate. A gaggle of left-liberal candidates, led by Yuh-Line Niou and Mondaire Jones, split the progressive vote; Goldman, who spent more than $4 million of his fortune, won the primary with just 26 percent of the vote.
Since taking office, Goldman’s unqualified support of Israel and his acceptance of donations from AIPAC have curried little favor among his district’s progressives. He also refused to endorse Mamdani, who carried the 10th district with over 60 percent of the vote in the general election and nearly 70 percent in the primary. While Goldman has voted reliably for pro-labor legislation, Region 9A’s endorsement of Lander suggests that a strong AFL-CIO scorecard alone may no longer be sufficient as the labor movement seeks to steady itself against a Trump administration stocked with anti-union figures. The race will test whether organized labor’s growing impatience with wealth and caution inside the Democratic Party can translate into a primary upset.