Micah Charles Lasher is a Jewish American politician elected in November 2026 to represent New York’s 12th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives. A Democrat, he succeeded retiring Representative Jerry Nadler, his former employer and political mentor.
Born in 1981, Lasher grew up on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. He attended Stuyvesant High School and earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology from New York University in 2003. He grew up attending Congregation Rodeph Sholom, a Reform synagogue that remained central to his family’s Jewish life.
Before entering elected office, Lasher held positions at the federal, state, and municipal levels. He worked as an aide to Nadler, directed state legislative affairs for Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s administration, served as chief of staff to New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, and became Governor Kathy Hochul’s policy director. His work in state government included developing gun safety measures, protections for abortion patients and providers, housing proposals, and policies linking the minimum wage to inflation.
Lasher was elected to the New York State Assembly in 2024 and took office in January 2025, representing the 69th District on Manhattan’s West Side. He subsequently entered the race for Nadler’s congressional seat, winning the June 2026 Democratic primary and defeating Republican Caroline Shinkle in November. His congressional platform emphasized housing and childcare affordability, expanded health care, gun safety, and aggressive oversight of the Trump administration.
Combating anti-Semitism became a significant part of Lasher’s legislative work. After protests outside Park East Synagogue in 2025, he sponsored legislation to protect access to houses of worship; the 2026 state budget adopted a buffer-zone measure. He also supported requiring colleges to designate Title VI coordinators and introduced the ACCESS Act to strengthen protections against discriminatory harassment in educational institutions. His congressional proposals included additional security funding for religious institutions and expanded Holocaust education.
Lasher has described the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attacks as a turning point in his understanding of Zionism. In a published reflection, he recalled that he had previously regarded Israel’s existence as secure and Zionism as an identity associated more closely with his father’s generation. The attacks and their aftermath challenged that assumption. Serving as Hochul’s policy director, he accompanied the governor to Israel shortly afterward.
During his congressional campaign, Lasher supported funding for Israel’s Iron Dome missile-defense system and opposed conditions on American assistance that singled out Israel. He also expressed concern about Palestinian deaths and criticized the extensive focus on Israel in campaign debates. At a June 8, 2026, synagogue forum, he described himself as “exhausted” by that discussion while affirming his commitment to Israel’s survival as a Jewish state. In a separate interview, he declined to establish a categorical red line on aid conditions, saying proposals should be assessed by whether they improve people’s lives and advance dialogue toward peace.
Lasher’s endorsement of Zohran Mamdani for New York City mayor in June 2025 exposed tensions between his support for Israel and his political alliances. Some Orthodox rabbis criticized the endorsement, citing Mamdani’s support for boycotting Israel and his response to the slogan “globalize the intifada.” Rabbi Shaul Robinson of Lincoln Square Synagogue publicly expressed dismay after participating in a discussion with Lasher about Jewish communal concerns. Lasher defended his endorsement while urging Mamdani to address threatening rhetoric and better appreciate the importance of Israel’s survival as a Jewish state.
In July 2026, after an Upper West Side stabbing injured two men, including a Jewish man leaving synagogue, Lasher joined communal leaders and elected officials calling for greater public safety. He specifically urged leaders, including Mayor Mamdani, to lower the temperature and help every New Yorker feel safe.
Lasher and his wife, Elizabeth, live on the Upper West Side with their three children and belong to Congregation Rodeph Sholom. His civic service has included leadership positions with the Riverside Park Conservancy, Everytown for Gun Safety, and the Community Service Society.
Sources: “Micah C. Lasher: Biography,” New York State Assembly.
“Micah Lasher,” Ballotpedia.
Miranda Levingston, “Election Q&A: Meet NY-12 Candidate Micah Lasher,” Patch, (June 12, 2026).
Micah Lasher, “(Re)Claiming Zionism,” October 7th Essays and Reflections, NYSN, p. 24.
“Platform and Policies,” Lasher for Congress.
“New York state passes 50-foot ‘buffer zone’ around houses of worship,” JTA, (May 27, 2026).
Matthew Kassel, “Micah Lasher says he’s ‘exhausted’ by political ‘obsession’ with Israel,” Jewish Insider, (June 9, 2026).
New York Editorial Board, “Micah Lasher on Housing, Immigration and His Campaign for Congress in New York’s 12th District,” Vital City, (June 9, 2026).
Grace Gilson, “A Manhattan pol’s endorsement of Zohran Mamdani sparks a Facebook fracas,” Forward, (July 3, 2025).
Luke Tress, “Jewish leaders demand Mamdani tone down rhetoric against Israel after stabbing,” Times of Israel, (July 24, 2026).
Robert Pozarycki, Barbara Russo-Lennon, “Manhattan elects brand-new congressional slate as Democrats sweep state races,” amNewYork, (November 4, 2026).
Photo: Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons.