New York State Assemb. Kimberly Jean-Pierre won't seek reelection in fall
Jean-Pierre was first elected to the state Assembly in November 2014. Credit: James Escher
Assemb. Kimberly Jean-Pierre, now in her fifth term in the State Legislature, said Monday she will not seek reelection.
Jean-Pierre (D-Wheatley Heights), in a statement to Newsday, said she will soon be beginning a “new challenge,” but didn’t go into detail. She isn’t immediately resigning from office.
“It has been the honor of a lifetime to serve my Long Island community,” Jean-Pierre, 40, said. “After careful thought and consideration, I have decided to take on an exciting new challenge that I will be announcing soon, and therefore will not be seeking reelection this November. I do not take this decision lightly.”
Jean-Pierre was first elected to the State Assembly in November 2014, succeeding Robert Sweeney, who represented the 11th District for 26 years.
The district is based primarily in Babylon, Suffolk County, and includes a sliver of Nassau County; more than 79,000 of the district’s active voters are in Suffolk. It covers Amityville, Lindenhurst, North Lindenhurst and the East Farmingdale-Republic Airport area.
The district includes nearly 40,000 Democrats and 21,000 Republicans. Still, Jean-Pierre narrowly won reelection in 2022, defeating Republican Christopher Sperber by 285 votes.
The timing of Jean-Pierre’s decision will impact how the Democrats choose a candidate to succeed her on the ballot this fall — while avoiding an intraparty primary.
There is no chance for a primary because the window for candidates to garner petitions to qualify for the primary ended last week. Now, a special Democratic committee will get to name a replacement candidate.
Republicans are backing Joe Cardinale of Amityville.
Jean-Pierre is the chairwoman of the Assembly Committee on Veterans Affairs and chair of the bipartisan Legislative Women’s Caucus. During her tenure, she sponsored legislation to increase penalties for housing discrimination and provide funds for fair housing “testing” to ensure real estate agents follow anti-discrimination laws.
Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie (D-Bronx) called her a friend and a “good advocate” for Long Island.
“The Assembly majority will miss her and particularly her leadership on the Veterans Affairs Committee,” Heastie said.
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