NYC mayoral candidate Brad Lander on May 07. Courtesy of Brad Lander for Mayor

By Jacob Kornbluh May 8, 2025

Brad Lander dropped Talmudic references, Yiddish proverbs and Hebrew phrases, and delved deep into his Jewish upbringing and choices in a speech to a modern Orthodox synagogue.

Lander, one of two Jewish candidates in the crowded New York City mayoral race, hopes to present himself as a reliable alternative to former Gov. Andrew Cuomo for more conservative Jewish voters who prioritize Israel and antisemitism in the ballot booth. Cuomo, haunted still by the sexual impropriety allegations that drove him from office and which he continues to deny, is leading in the polls with a centrist, pro-Israel message,

At  West Side Institutional, a prominent modern-Orthodox synagogue in Manhattan, on Wednesday, Lander recalled almost becoming a rabbi.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

Growing up in Creve Coeur, a suburb of St. Louis, Missouri, Lander served as the social action vice president of the Reform Jewish youth movement, formerly known as the North American Federation for Temple Youth. He was an active member of Hillel at the University of Chicago and worked as a Sunday school music teacher and youth group advisor at KAM Isaiah Israel, the city’s oldest Jewish congregation.

Lander also named his two children after prominent Jewish activists. Marek was named for Marek Edelman, the last Warsaw Ghetto Uprising commander; and Rosa was named in part for Rose Schneiderman, a Jewish immigrant who fought tirelessly for workers rights.

Lander said he “was taught to stand up both for Jews and for all people who are facing oppression” to build a more equal and inclusive society.

His campaign billed the speech as a “major address” on antisemitism and democracy.

“I sometimes joke that our people have been having more or less the same debates for 2,600 years,” Lander said. “On the one hand is a more inward-focused approach, grounded in the value of gevurah, strength through boundaries. On the other hand is a more outward-focused approach, grounded in the value of chesed, loving-kindness through connections.”

“We aren’t going to agree on all of this. We haven’t for 2600 years,” he said. “Nonetheless, here in New York City, I think there are some principles we can use to navigate our differences‚ the way Talmudic debate recognizes that the truth is complex, and that making room for diverse viewpoints, grounded in shared values, can be the goal, rather than reaching a single, definitive conclusion.”

Lander, the city comptroller, is polling in the single digits along with Scott Stringer, his Jewish predecessor, in the nine-person race for the Democratic Party’s nomination. Cuomo and Zohran Mamdani, a Democratic Socialist who is Muslim, are currently leading the pack.

In recent weeks, the leading candidates have intensified their outreach to the city’s sizable Jewish electorate. Visiting Orthodox communities, which often vote in blocs based on rabbinic endorsements, has become routine. In 2021, those voters played a key role in Eric Adams’ victory, which was ultimately decided by just 7,000 votes in the final round of ranked-choice voting. Adams is running as an independent in the general election on a new “End Antisemitism’ ballot line.

Cuomo and Stringer spoke at the same Orthodox synagogue in recent weeks. Mamdani stopped by on Sunday at an annual legislative breakfast in Flatbush, a heavily Orthodox neighborhood in Brooklyn.

An alternative to Cuomo and Mandani? 

Lander is presenting himself as a Jewish voice both proud and pluralistic, distinguishing himself from Cuomo and his bag of scandals, and Mamdani, who has a long history of criticizing Israel.

Lander distinguished his own liberal Zionist views from those on “both the left and the right” who have either excused the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attacks or minimized Palestinian suffering. He added that “many days, I feel torn apart myself” over the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the rise in antisemitism since the massacres. At the same time, he was unapologetic about his criticism of the Israeli government, his calls for a permanent ceasefire and what he described as “the ongoing apartheid of life in the West Bank.”

“I have tried to walk those words of Rabbi Hillel, Im ein ani li mi li, uch’sheani l’atsmi, ma’ani?” Lander said. The well-known phrase translates as “If I am not for myself, who am I, and if I am only for myself, what am I?.

“That’s why I’ve stood up proudly for the vision of a Jewish and democratic Israel, against those who would erase it,” Landeer said. “That’s why I’ve met with dozens of hostage families, and keep them close to my heart.”

Lander took direct aim at Cuomo, who attempted to paint Lander as anti-Israel in an appearance as the same synagogue, accusing the former governor of “weaponizing antisemitism” for political gain.

He compared Cuomo to President Donald Trump, who has questioned the Jewishness of Chuck Schumer, the highest-ranking Jewish elected official in America. “Both are using Jews as pawns to advance their own interests — in dangerous ways,” Lander said.

Scott Stringer’s pitch to Jewish voters

Stringer, who enjoyed the support of progressives in his first campaign for mayor in 2021, including the left-leaning Jews of Manhattan and Brooklyn, has also made a pitch to the broader Jewish electorate.

Stringer toured Jewish businesses in the heart of Borough Park and has more moderate views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

In remarks at the West Side synagogue last week, Stringer said his Jewish faith has guided him and given him strength as an elected official. “I have also considered myself a servant of the Jewish people,” he said.  Stringer also highlighted his son’s recent bar mitzvah, and outlined his vision to counter antisemitism.

Stringer was not among the candidates Cuomo targeted in his speech from the same bimah, but he went hard after the front-runner.

He said Cuomo’s outreach was “cynical” and that he “lied” in an attempt to divide the Jewish community. Stringer cited an investigative report about the pro-Israel group Cuomo launched last year that showed that the group never aired ads against Hamas or promoted the initiatives it had promised. “He thinks he’s getting one over on us. But we know better,” he said.

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a gift today!

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$90 $180

$360

Other amount