Assemblywoman Rajkumar kicks off campaign for NYC Comptroller

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Assemblywoman Jenifer Rajkumar kicked off her campaign for New York City Comptroller, November 20, 2024, night, where New York’s diversity was on display. A coalition of hundreds of supporters from all five Boroughs at The Palace in Woodside, Queens, a press release from Rajkumar’s campaign said.

If elected, she would become the first South Asian and first woman of color to be Comptroller.

“No one thought I would be standing here today,” Rajkumar is quoted saying at the event. “But nothing can stop a determined South Asian woman. For every New Yorker who has been underestimated and counted out, this campaign is for you.”

A coalition of activists from several communities, religious leaders of various faiths, local business owners, women leaders, were present, among them, members of New York’s Indian, African American, Latino, Jewish, other Asian American, Muslim, Dominican, Colombian, Nepali, Bangladeshi, Tibetan, Filipino, Caribbean, Pakistani, and LGBTQ+ communities.

Rajkumar’s campaign said it had raised more than any other Comptroller candidate in the latest filing period.

At the kick-off,  Rajkumar outlined her vision to wield the powers of Comptroller to address what she described as the “most pressing” issues facing New Yorkers.

“She will develop solutions to address the 9,000 people committing the majority of many crimes; crack down on reckless e-bikes; close the gender wage gap; create a bridge to college for high school graduates; improve access to affordable housing; and safeguard $270 billion in pension fund assets for 700,000 current and retired City employees,” the press release said.

She highlighted her record of achievements in Albany as the first South Asian woman elected to New York State Office, halping pass the historic Diwali School Holiday bill, the SMOKEOUT Act, among other things.

A Stanford Law and University of Pennsylvania educated lawyer, and former City Univerity of New York professor, Rajkumar has won landmark cases, and was New York’s first ever Director of Immigration Affairs, managing a $31 million project to provide legal services to immigrants.

She concluded her remarks with a rallying cry, “Are you ready to make this truly the Greatest City in the World? Let’s win this together!”