Brad Lander, the chief fiscal officer of New York City, announced Wednesday that he is challenging U.S. Rep Dan Goldman in a Democratic primary for a liberal district covering lower Manhattan and parts of brownstone Brooklyn.
A longtime fixture of the city’s progressive wing, Lander launched his bid with endorsements from Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, promising “courageous leadership in the face of Donald Trump’s attacks on New Yorkers.”
“While the oligarchy drives the affordability crisis, they shouldn’t be able to buy a seat in Congress,” Lander said in a campaign video, an apparent reference to Goldman, who is an heir to the Levi Strauss denim fortune.
He then touted his relationship with Mamdani, whom Goldman had declined to endorse in the mayor’s race, in part because of differences in their views toward Israel.
“Our mayor can have an ally in Washington instead of an adversary in his own backyard,” Lander said. “I’m running for Congress because the challenges we face can’t be solved with strongly worded letters or high-dollar fundraisers, and not by doing AIPAC’s bidding."
Mamdani's endorsement of Lander marked the mayor-elect's most high-profile incursion into national politics since his stunning victory. It comes as other progressives are hoping to capitalize on that momentum with a spate of challenges to moderate Democrats in 2026.
“Brad’s unwavering principles, deep knowledge, and sincere empathy are what make him a true leader,” Mamdani said. “He has been a trusted ally and partner of mine and I’m proud to support him as I know he’ll continue delivering for those who need government to show up for them the most."
Lander’s term as city comptroller ends on Dec. 31 after he decided not to seek reelection.
Lander and Mamdani endorsed one another during the mayoral primary in an effort, under the city’s ranked choice voting system, to join forces against former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who at the time was the front-runner.
The partnership appeared to help them both. Mamdani’s support boosted Lander among the progressive base, while the backing of a high-profile Jewish candidate helped Mamdani as he faced attacks over his criticism of Israel's war in Gaza.
Lander, who is also a former city council member, has been eyeing a challenge to Goldman since losing the Democratic mayoral primary to Mamdani this summer.
Both Lander and Goldman have been vocal critics of the federal government's deportation agenda, appearing at a high-profile immigration court in Manhattan to observe proceedings over the last several months.
Lander was arrested there twice and faces a misdemeanor obstruction charge stemming from one of the incidents.
Goldman, a two-term congressman, is a former federal prosecutor who was lead counsel for Trump’s first impeachment. While in Congress, Goldman has supported raising taxes on wealthy people as well as the Green New Deal climate change proposal. He is a supporter of Israel but has been heavily critical of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and has condemned settler violence.
Maddy Rosen, a spokesperson for Goldman's campaign, said “Dan is focused on stopping the Trump administration from what they’re doing to immigrant families in his district right now. He’s proud of his progressive record in Congress and will deal with Brad and other challengers in the new year."
In his campaign video, Lander also evoked the late children’s TV host Fred Rogers, singing “Would you be mine? Could you be mine? Won’t you be my neighbor?”
“I know it’s corny, but I love the idea that democracy is just neighbors working together to make our lives in common better,” he said.
Associated Press writer Dave Collins in Hartford, Connecticut, contributed to this report.
FILE - New York City Comptroller Brad Lander participates a protest against immigration crackdown in the aftermath of a raid on Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Olga Fedorova, File)
FILE - New York City Comptroller Brad Lander speaks during a press conference outside outside the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building, Wednesday, July 16, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura, File)
GOMA, Congo (AP) — More than 400 civilians have been killed since the Rwanda-backed M23 armed group escalated its offensive in the South Kivu province in eastern Congo, regional officials said late Wednesday, adding that Rwandan special forces were in the strategic city of Uvira.
M23’s latest offensive comes despite a U.S.-mediated peace agreement signed last week by the Congolese and Rwandan presidents in Washington. The accord didn’t include the rebel group, which is negotiating separately with Congo and agreed earlier this year to a ceasefire that both sides accuse the other of violating. However, it obliges Rwanda to halt support for armed groups and work to end hostilities.
“More than 413 civilians (have been) killed by bullets, grenades, and bombs, including many women, children, and young people” in localities between Uvira and Bukavu, the regional capital, the South Kivu government spokesperson said in a statement late Wednesday.
“According to the information gathered, the forces present in the city are composed of Rwandan special forces and some of their foreign mercenaries, operating in clear violation of the ceasefire as well as the Washington and Doha agreements, in total disregard of the commitments made," the statement added.
M23 said it had taken control of the strategic city of Uvira in eastern Congo on Wednesday afternoon, following a rapid offensive since the start of the month.
The announcement by M23 spokesperson Lawrence Kanyuka, posted on the social platform X, encouraged citizens who fled to return to their homes. Uvira is an important port city on the northern tip of Lake Tanganyika and is directly across from neighboring Burundi’s largest city, Bujumbura.
Congo, the U.S. and U.N. experts accuse Rwanda of backing M23, which had hundreds of members in 2021. Now, according to the U.N., the group has around 6,500 fighters.
While Rwanda denies that claim, it acknowledged last year that it has troops and missile systems in eastern Congo, allegedly to safeguard its security. U.N. experts estimate there are up to 4,000 Rwandan forces in Congo.
Burundian Foreign Minister Edouard Bizimana, in an interview with French state media RFI on Wednesday, urged the U.S. to pressure Rwandan President Paul Kagame to ensure the implementation of the agreement signed in the U.S., saying, “M23 without Kagame, without Rwanda, is nothing.”
Bizimana said the capture of Uvira poses a threat to the economic capital, Bujumbura.
“We have registered more than 30,000 refugees and asylum-seekers in the last three days … Uvira and Bujumbura are coastal cities. What threatens Uvira also threatens Bujumbura."
On Thursday, Kanyuka said on X that “some Burundian forces have returned to their national territory, while others have entrenched themselves in the highlands,” referring to the hills of Uvira and Mininebwe in South Kivu.
“Since early Thursday morning, Dec. 11, 2025, these elements entrenched in the highlands have resumed, with unacceptable brutality, their campaign of extermination against our Tutsi Banyamulenge compatriots in Minembwe, indiscriminately launching bombs and using heavy artillery that is killing innocent civilians, including women and children," he wrote.
In a statement Wednesday, the U.S. Embassy in Kinshasa urged M23 and Rwandan troops to cease all offensive operations and for the Rwandan Defense Forces to withdraw to Rwanda.
On Wednesday morning, the Rwandan Ministry of Foreign Affairs blamed the Congolese armed forces for the recent ceasefire violations in a statement on X.
“The DRC has openly stated that it would not observe any ceasefire, and was fighting to recapture territories lost to AFC/M23, even as the peace process unfolded,” it said.
More than 100 armed groups are vying for a foothold in mineral-rich eastern Congo near the border with Rwanda, most prominently M23. The conflict has created one of the world’s most significant humanitarian crises, with more than 7 million people displaced, officials say.
Local U.N. partners report that more than 200,000 people have been displaced across the province since Dec. 2, with more than 70 killed. Civilians also have crossed into Burundi, and there have been reports of shells falling in the town of Rugombo, on the Burundian side of the border, raising concerns about the conflict spilling over into Burundian territory.
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Pronczuk reported from Dakar, Senegal. Associated Press writer Renovat Ndabashinze in Bujumbura, Burundi, contributed to this report.
FILE - M23 rebels escort government soldiers and police who surrendered to an undisclosed location in Goma, Democratic republic of the Congo, Jan. 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Moses Sawasawa, File)
