DSA member Christina Cover weighing Assembly bid in the South Bronx

The New York City chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America may have its eye on yet another Assembly seat this cycle – this time in the South Bronx. 

Christina Cover, a public school teacher and former communications coordinator for Assembly Member Khaleel Anderson, filed Tuesday to run for Assembly District 84, state campaign finance records show. Cover is a member of both DSA and the Working Families Party.

The South Bronx district is currently represented by Assembly Member Amanda Septimo, who recently launched a challenge to Rep. Ritchie Torres. Septimo cannot run for both Congress and for reelection in Albany, which leaves the state legislative race open.

Shortly after City & State first contacted Cover asking for comment on her filing, the 28-year-old posted on X saying she is “strongly considering” a run. In the same post, she spoke of a desire to improve literacy among Bronx students and fight for affordability. 

Though Septimo, who has been elected thrice with the backing of the WFP, is a progressive, she is not a member of DSA and is a district leader for the powerful Bronx Democratic Party. And while former Gov. Andrew Cuomo won the district by just over 10 percentage points in last year’s mayoral primary, Mayor Zohran Mamdani went on to take the district by nearly 20 points in November. Cover’s campaign may therefore serve as a test of both how far a DSA wave can go and of the county organization’s strength in the area. Septimo declined to comment on Cover’s candidacy or any other potential candidates. 

Two people familiar with DSA discussions said the group will consider endorsing Cover, but that another candidate will also be considered. They said the candidate forum for the district will likely be in late January, around Jan. 28. 

Reached by City & State via text, Bronx Dems Executive Director Ariana Collado said the county organization has not had conversations with either Cover or nonprofit leader Gregory Blackmon, who has also filed to run (though it’s not clear he is doing so with any institutional support). “We haven’t made a decision about endorsing a candidate at this present moment,” she added. 

But with a county machine as robust as the Bronx Dems, one can expect it will put up a fight.