Vanessa Aronson is running for Assembly – but only if Alex Bores runs for Congress

Vanessa Aronson, who came in second in a competitive New York City Council primary on the Upper East Side in June, on Tuesday filed to run for Assembly District 73, state campaign finance records show. 

The seat is currently held by Assembly Member Alex Bores, who is one of several people eying a bid for Congress, now that longtime Rep. Jerry Nadler has announced he will not seek reelection next year. 

Aronson told City & State that she filed now to “be prepared” for a run should the Democratic primary become an open one. “I will not run against Alex Bores,” she said, adding she’d bow out of the race if Bores decides not to run for Congress and instead seeks reelection to the Assembly. (Bores cannot run for both offices at the same time.)

Aronson said she had spoken with Bores about her plans, which Bores confirmed.

At this point, though, Bores has not yet filed to make a bid for the House – or even confirmed that he will. “I don’t plan to retire next year,” Bores told City & State. He declined to specify whether that means he will run for Congress or for reelection.

A former public school teacher, Aronson is president of the Lexington Democratic Club. She came up short in June’s crowded primary to replace term-limited City Council Member Keith Powers – falling to Virginia Maloney, daughter of longtime former Rep. Carolyn Maloney, after five rounds of ranked choice voting.

Aronson’s filing is one of several that has ensued since Nadler announced his retirement. Bores’ colleague, Assembly Member Micah Lasher, has filed to run for Nadler’s seat and is seen as the veteran Upper West Side lawmaker’s heir apparent. Eli Northrup, who came in second behind Lasher last year, has since filed to make another run for the Assembly.