Jessica González-Rojas launches state Senate campaign with high-profile endorsements

Assembly Member Jessica González-Rojas kicked off her state Senate campaign on Monday night with a fundraiser in Jackson Heights, Queens, attended by New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, Queens Borough President Donovan Richards, Assembly Member Catalina Cruz, and New York City Council Members Shekar Krishnan and Tiffany Cabán – all of whom are backing González-Rojas’ primary challenge against state Sen. Jessica Ramos.

As City & State previously reported, González-Rojas, who represents Assembly District 34 in western Queens, filed paperwork last week to run in the Democratic primary for the overlapping 13th state Senate District, currently represented by Ramos.

González-Rojas, better known as “JGR” in political circles, released a video announcing her entry into the race on Tuesday morning.

“Too often, politics gets stuck in ego and gridlock,” González-Rojas says in the video. “I spent my life organizing, advocating and working in diverse coalitions to get things done. … We need a state senator that’s going to bring people together across city, state and federal government in order to fight for Queens and deliver for our communities.”

The video does not mention Ramos by name.

González-Rojas and Ramos have much in common. They are both progressive Latina politicians named Jessica who won elections to the state Legislature by primarying more conservative incumbents – with Ramos defeating then-state Sen. José Peralta in 2018 and González-Rojas defeating then-Assembly Member Michael DenDekker in 2020.

González-Rojas is a democratic socialist who applied for the Democratic Socialists of America’s endorsement when she ran for Assembly in 2020. (The DSA, of which I am a former member, chose not to endorse in her race because it included multiple primary challengers.) Ramos does not identify as a socialist.

The most significant difference between the two Jessicas may be that Ramos has previously alienated some of her progressive colleagues.

In 2022, she inexplicably picked a fight with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, whose congressional district overlaps with her state Senate district. Ramos accused Ocasio-Cortez of not spending enough time in her district office and not returning her phone calls and text messages. It was a petty complaint that distanced Ramos from someone who has become one of most popular and influential progressive politicians in the nation.

On Tuesday, Ocasio-Cortez signaled her support for González-Rojas’ primary challenge against Ramos. “Let’s GO @votejgr! We got you,” she posted.

The biggest blow to Ramos’ progressive reputation came in the closing weeks of this year’s Democratic mayoral primary. Ramos spent much of her failed mayoral campaign railing against former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who was the front-runner for almost the entire race, as part of a loose coalition of anti-Cuomo progressives. But on June 6, with her campaign failing to gain much traction, she did an about-face and endorsed Cuomo. In response, progressive organizations quickly rescinded their endorsements of her.

The controversy created an opening for González-Rojas, who had been strongly encouraged to run for Ramos’ seat.