Top story
Leading the Future struggles as pro-safety PACs gain ground
Leading the Future and its affiliated PACs still have over $20m in cash on hand, according to their latest disclosures.
Updated Oct 16, 2026, 2:28 PM ET
Democratic · 3 November 2026
Micah Lasher
Member of the New York State Assembly from the 69th district (since 2025)
Micah Lasher, a Democrat who has represented the 69th district in the New York State Assembly since 2025, is his party's nominee for the open 12th congressional district seat in 2026 against Republican Caroline Shinkle.
2026 Races & Market Forecast
Live TruthIndex™ and prediction market consensus for races contested by Micah Lasher.
Latest coverage
Live News
Recent media coverage for Micah Lasher.
No story this week names this candidate.
- Born
- December 18, 1981
- Birthplace
- Manhattan, New York City
- Education
- Stuyvesant High School (1999)
New York University (degree in sociology, 2003)
Biography & Campaign Analysis
Background
Micah Lasher was born on December 18, 1981, in Manhattan to Stephanie Lasher and Albert C. Lasher, and he grew up on the Upper West Side.
As a teenager he performed magic tricks on national television, and at 16 he became an editor-in-chief of The Stuyvesant Spectator before graduating from Stuyvesant High School in 1999.
He graduated from New York University in 2003 with a degree in sociology and, while still in college, was a founding partner of the political consulting firm SKDKnickerbocker.
Career
Micah Lasher began in politics at 16 as deputy campaign manager for Eric Schneiderman's 1998 New York State Senate campaign, and from 2007 to 2009 he worked as a special assistant and chief aide to Representative Jerrold Nadler.
He served as Director of State Legislative Affairs for Mayor Michael Bloomberg from 2010 to 2012, led StudentsFirstNY, and in 2013 became chief of staff to Attorney General Schneiderman. In 2016 he lost the Democratic primary for the 31st State Senate district to Marisol Alcantara, 32.7% to 31.6%.
Lasher was head of policy and communications at Sidewalk Labs from 2017 to 2020. Governor Kathy Hochul appointed him Director of Policy in November 2021, and he helped write a set of gun laws after the 2022 Buffalo shooting before resigning in early 2024 to run for the State Assembly. He won the five-candidate Democratic primary in the 69th district with 53% of the vote, ran unopposed in November, and took office in 2025.
2026 race
New York's 12th congressional district lies entirely in Manhattan, covering the Upper West Side, Upper East Side, Midtown, Hell's Kitchen, Chelsea, Murray Hill, and Gramercy. The seat is open because Democrat Jerry Nadler, in the House since 1992, announced his retirement on September 2, 2025.
Micah Lasher, endorsed by Nadler, Hochul, and Bloomberg, won the eight-candidate Democratic primary on June 23, 2026, with 38.9% of the vote, ahead of Assemblymember Alex Bores at 34.9% and Jack Schlossberg at 10.9%.
In the general election on November 3, 2026, he faces Republican lawyer Caroline Shinkle, who also holds the Conservative Party line, along with independents Wilneida Negron, a political scientist, and Karen Ortiz, a former Equal Employment Opportunity Commission administrative judge.