Julia Salazar: Relationships
Julia Salazar's political career has been defined by her membership in the Democratic Socialists of America and her position within a network of progressive and socialist elected officials, advocacy organizations, and labor unions in New York.
Salazar was the first DSA member elected to the New York State Legislature, winning her seat in 2018 as part of the same political wave that sent Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to Congress 1. Ocasio-Cortez endorsed Salazar during her 2018 campaign, and the two have maintained an alliance rooted in their shared affiliation with the DSA and overlapping Brooklyn-Queens constituencies 2. Salazar's 2018 victory helped establish the template for subsequent DSA-backed campaigns in New York, contributing to what became a growing bloc of socialist legislators in Albany 3.
Within the New York State Legislature, Salazar is part of a cohort of DSA-endorsed elected officials that has included State Senators Jabari Brisport and Kristen Gonzalez, and Assembly Members Zohran Mamdani, Phara Souffrant Forrest, Marcela Mitaynes, Emily Gallagher, and Sarahana Shrestha 3. This group has collaborated on legislation including the Build Public Renewables Act, housing reforms, and criminal justice measures . Salazar has worked particularly closely with Mamdani, attending his 2025 mayoral campaign events and publicly endorsing his successful run for New York City mayor 5. Mamdani's election as mayor in November 2025 further elevated the DSA's political profile and strengthened the legislative-executive relationship between the socialist caucus and city government 6.
Salazar's relationship with Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins has been characterized by cooperation within the Democratic conference. Stewart-Cousins appointed Salazar to committee chairmanships and elevated her to the role of Deputy Majority Leader for Senate and Assembly Relations in 2025 7. Stewart-Cousins publicly supported the passage of the Prison Reform Omnibus Bill and the HALT Solitary Confinement Act, both of which Salazar sponsored .
In her 2018 campaign, Salazar received endorsements from Our Revolution, the Democratic Socialists of America, Cynthia Nixon, and Ocasio-Cortez 2. Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez, who represented the congressional district overlapping with Salazar's state senate district, was an early supporter of her candidacy . Linda Sarsour, the Palestinian-American activist and Women's March leader, also publicly backed Salazar during the 2018 biographical controversies .
Salazar has maintained close ties with housing advocacy organizations, particularly Housing Justice for All and its campaign coordinator Cea Weaver, who played a central role in the campaigns for both Good Cause Eviction and the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act . She has also worked with Make the Road New York, New York Communities for Change, and the Metropolitan Council on Housing on tenant rights organizing and policy development 12.
In the labor movement, Salazar has worked with the United Auto Workers, having served as an organizer for UAW Local 2110 before entering office 13. Her legislative work on the Build Public Renewables Act was developed in partnership with unions including 1199SEIU, NYSUT, and UAW 9A, which supported the bill's prevailing wage requirements and project labor agreements 14.
Salazar's criminal justice reform work has connected her with organizations including the Katal Center for Equity, Health, and Justice, the Legal Action Center, the Correctional Association of New York, and the New York Campaign for Alternatives to Isolated Confinement . She has worked with Robert Brooks Jr., the son of Robert Brooks, and Messiah Ramkissoon, mentor to Messiah Nantwi, in advancing the Prison Reform Omnibus Bill .
Before entering office, Salazar worked as a community organizer with Jews for Racial and Economic Justice, a relationship that has continued to inform her criminal justice and police accountability work 15. She is an active member of the Puerto Rican and Hispanic Task Force in the legislature and serves as Treasurer of the Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic and Asian Caucus 7.
Salazar's relationship with Governor Kathy Hochul has involved both collaboration and tension. While Hochul signed the Good Cause Eviction law and the Prison Reform Omnibus Bill, Salazar has publicly criticized the governor's implementation of the Build Public Renewables Act and pushed back against proposals to weaken tenant protections during budget negotiations .
Overview
Julia Salazar's political career has been defined by her membership in the Democratic Socialists of America and her position within a network of progressive and socialist elected officials, advocacy organizations, and labor unions in New York.
Salazar was the first DSA member elected to the New York State Legislature, winning her seat in 2018 as part of the same political wave that sent Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to Congress 1. Ocasio-Cortez endorsed Salazar during her 2018 campaign, and the two have maintained an alliance rooted in their shared affiliation with the DSA and overlapping Brooklyn-Queens constituencies 2. Salazar's 2018 victory helped establish the template for subsequent DSA-backed campaigns in New York, contributing to what became a growing bloc of socialist legislators in Albany 3.
Within the New York State Legislature, Salazar is part of a cohort of DSA-endorsed elected officials that has included State Senators Jabari Brisport and Kristen Gonzalez, and Assembly Members Zohran Mamdani, Phara Souffrant Forrest, Marcela Mitaynes, Emily Gallagher, and Sarahana Shrestha 3. This group has collaborated on legislation including the Build Public Renewables Act, housing reforms, and criminal justice measures . Salazar has worked particularly closely with Mamdani, attending his 2025 mayoral campaign events and publicly endorsing his successful run for New York City mayor 5. Mamdani's election as mayor in November 2025 further elevated the DSA's political profile and strengthened the legislative-executive relationship between the socialist caucus and city government 6.
Salazar's relationship with Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins has been characterized by cooperation within the Democratic conference. Stewart-Cousins appointed Salazar to committee chairmanships and elevated her to the role of Deputy Majority Leader for Senate and Assembly Relations in 2025 7. Stewart-Cousins publicly supported the passage of the Prison Reform Omnibus Bill and the HALT Solitary Confinement Act, both of which Salazar sponsored .
In her 2018 campaign, Salazar received endorsements from Our Revolution, the Democratic Socialists of America, Cynthia Nixon, and Ocasio-Cortez 2. Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez, who represented the congressional district overlapping with Salazar's state senate district, was an early supporter of her candidacy . Linda Sarsour, the Palestinian-American activist and Women's March leader, also publicly backed Salazar during the 2018 biographical controversies .
Salazar has maintained close ties with housing advocacy organizations, particularly Housing Justice for All and its campaign coordinator Cea Weaver, who played a central role in the campaigns for both Good Cause Eviction and the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act . She has also worked with Make the Road New York, New York Communities for Change, and the Metropolitan Council on Housing on tenant rights organizing and policy development 12.
In the labor movement, Salazar has worked with the United Auto Workers, having served as an organizer for UAW Local 2110 before entering office 13. Her legislative work on the Build Public Renewables Act was developed in partnership with unions including 1199SEIU, NYSUT, and UAW 9A, which supported the bill's prevailing wage requirements and project labor agreements 14.
Salazar's criminal justice reform work has connected her with organizations including the Katal Center for Equity, Health, and Justice, the Legal Action Center, the Correctional Association of New York, and the New York Campaign for Alternatives to Isolated Confinement . She has worked with Robert Brooks Jr., the son of Robert Brooks, and Messiah Ramkissoon, mentor to Messiah Nantwi, in advancing the Prison Reform Omnibus Bill .
Before entering office, Salazar worked as a community organizer with Jews for Racial and Economic Justice, a relationship that has continued to inform her criminal justice and police accountability work 15. She is an active member of the Puerto Rican and Hispanic Task Force in the legislature and serves as Treasurer of the Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic and Asian Caucus 7.
Salazar's relationship with Governor Kathy Hochul has involved both collaboration and tension. While Hochul signed the Good Cause Eviction law and the Prison Reform Omnibus Bill, Salazar has publicly criticized the governor's implementation of the Build Public Renewables Act and pushed back against proposals to weaken tenant protections during budget negotiations .