Adriano Espaillat: Quotes and Statements

Espaillat has frequently framed his personal story as central to his political identity. In his concession speech on the night of his 2026 primary loss, he reflected on his immigrant journey, telling supporters that when he arrived in the country as a young immigrant boy, he never imagined he would serve in Congress, and called it the privilege of his life . In a 2017 interview, he posed what he described as a defining question for the country, asking whether America was a nation of deportation or a nation of aspirations, and criticized heavy-handed enforcement policies that he said were changing the country's character ².

On the topic of ICE, Espaillat described the agency in 2018 as a runaway train that was not implementing or enforcing the law in a humane way or in the tradition that characterizes America . Following a June 2025 incident in which he and Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez were denied entry to a federal detention center in Manhattan, he stated that ICE had violated all of their rights and that the public deserved to know what was happening at the facility .

Espaillat has been consistently outspoken about the need for stricter gun regulations. He has said that closing loopholes to ensure that people who should not have guns cannot obtain them is common sense and will save lives, adding that ghost guns are guns, plain and simple ⁵. In a 2022 statement, he described gun violence as a crisis that takes countless lives and takes a toll on communities, and expressed pride in working for safer communities with common-sense reforms ⁶.

After testing positive for COVID-19 in January 2021, days after the Capitol siege, Espaillat noted that the varying ages, ethnicities, races, and genders of the infected lawmakers demonstrated that COVID-19 does not discriminate, and stressed the importance of social distancing and mask-wearing . During the subsequent impeachment proceedings, he stated that President Trump had summoned and dispatched his mob to kidnap and hurt members of Congress and was unfit to hold office .

In the context of a 2026 endorsement from Representative Gregory Meeks, Espaillat's role on housing issues was underscored by Meeks's statement that at a time when working families were being priced out of neighborhoods they had called home for generations, Espaillat had been on the front lines of the fight to make New York City more affordable .

When the winning proposal for the Kingsbridge Armory redevelopment was announced in January 2025, Espaillat congratulated the 8th Regiment Partners and described the project as a vibrant multi-purpose facility and economic engine that the community could enjoy for years .

During the contested 2026 primary, Espaillat emphasized his record and experience. He told a Spectrum News NY1 debate that he was running on his record of accomplishment, a record that had listened to people and brought results to the community . He pushed back against suggestions that outside influences dictated his votes, maintaining that no one tells him how to vote but his constituents . When the campaign turned negative, with his challenger accusing his supporters of racial slurs at polling sites, Espaillat condemned the aggressive tone of the campaign and asked people to tone it down . He also affirmed his challenger's Dominican heritage, saying she was Dominican .

Espaillat has called for Supreme Court accountability, arguing after the controversy over Justice Alito's flags that the justice should recuse himself from all January 6th-related cases, and urged passage of the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal, and Transparency Act ¹⁵. On the death penalty, he has urged executive action to commute federal death sentences ¹⁶.

Espaillat has described his election to Congress as a reflection of what is possible for the Dominican-American community. He has spoken about how he entered public service to make a difference and spent his career fighting for New Yorkers, immigrants, and their families . He introduced a resolution supporting the establishment of a national month of recognition for Dominican Americans to honor their contributions to American life ¹⁸.