In the aftermath of New York’s Democratic primary, a broader debate continues to unfold in the city’s Democratic coalition. For many Latino leaders, the disputes surrounding several congressional races were never simply about individual candidates. They reflected growing concerns about representation, community leadership, and whether longstanding Latino political institutions are retaining influence in the communities they helped build.
Those tensions were heightened in the weeks leading up to the New York primary, when Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders traveled here to campaign for Democratic Socialists of America-backed congressional candidates, opposing candidates supported by many of the community leaders and organizations that spent decades building political power in Latino neighborhoods.
To understand why these disputes have resonated so strongly, it is important to understand how Latino political power evolved in New York. Through decades of organizing, labor activism, coalition-building, and community institutions, Puerto Rican and Dominican leaders helped transform neighborhoods like Washington Heights into centers of Latino political influence. That history matters because many Latino leaders are now asking whether these institutions are being treated as partners in political change or as obstacles to it. Recent disputes between prominent Latino elected officials and leaders associated with the city’s ascendant progressive movement have only intensified that debate.
Congressmember Adriano Espaillat, the first Dominican American elected to Congress and one of New York’s most influential Latino leaders, found himself at odds with Mayor Zohran Mamdani after the mayor endorsed DSA-backed challenger Darializa Avila Chevalier in New York’s 13th Congressional District. The move surprised many observers, given Espaillat’s support of Mamdani, and for many Latino leaders, the controversy was not simply about one endorsement. It reflected a broader frustration that candidates selected and promoted by outside political organizations are increasingly being elevated over local leaders who spent years organizing residents, building community relationships, and earning trust in the neighborhoods they seek to represent.
The concerns have not been limited to Latino leaders. In a recent show of solidarity, several prominent Black elected officials rallied behind Espaillat, emphasizing the longstanding Black-Latino political alliance and warning against outside forces reshaping communities without local buy-in.
Similarly, Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez, the first Puerto Rican woman elected to Congress, has emerged as a leading voice in the debate over who gets to shape the future of Latino political representation. After endorsing Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso as her preferred successor, Velázquez found herself at odds with Mamdani, who backed DSA-endorsed candidate Claire Valdez.
The issue extends beyond endorsements. Candidates receiving significant institutional support, particularly from the DSA, often appear to have weaker ties to the communities they seek to represent than the local leaders and organizations that spent decades building political power in those neighborhoods.
Viewed individually, these disputes can be dismissed as ordinary political disagreements. Viewed together, however, they raise a larger question about power, representation, and who gets to shape the future of our communities.
This is where the concept of political gentrification becomes relevant. It occurs when longstanding communities lose influence over institutions they spent generations building. The language of inclusion remains, but decision-making power begins to shift elsewhere.
The debate extends beyond congressional races. New Yorkers elected a mayor to govern a city of more than 8 million people, not to lead factional battles in the Democratic coalition. While Mamdani is entitled to make endorsements, many Latino leaders wonder whether the communities that helped create that coalition still have a meaningful voice in shaping its future.
Political influence is never permanent. It must be maintained, renewed, and defended by each generation. If Latino communities want to preserve a meaningful voice in the institutions and coalitions they helped build, participation cannot end with a primary election.
For generations, Puerto Rican and Dominican leaders fought to ensure that Latino communities would speak for themselves. The challenge facing New York today is ensuring that, in the pursuit of political change, we do not forget that lesson.
Anna Correa is a third-generation Washington Heights resident of Dominican and Puerto Rican heritage. A law student at CUNY School of Law, she previously served as deputy press secretary to Mayor Eric Adams.
