March 19th , 2026 Len’s Political Note #798 Alex Bores New York 12
2026 General Election
I have a rule for this newsletter, one that I occasionally break. Wait until the primary and write about the Democratic nominee. The object of Len’s Political Notes is to help elect Democrats who, with additional resources, can win. If I write a piece about a candidate before his or her primary, it is usually because we all know who will win the primary. A few times, I have written a piece before the primary occurred because I did not properly understand the district. Occasionally I pick a candidate because he or she just seems to have the edge on the others. And, despite my preference for a big tent Democratic Party, I once wrote a piece supporting a candidate primarying an anti-abortion incumbent.
Today, I am breaking my rule. This Political Notes is written about a candidate three months before the New York primary on June 23. Your support for that candidate will help him become the nominee. In New York 12, the Democratic nominee will almost certainly be elected to Congress.
I know Alex Bores. I know him well enough to say hello to and chat with for a little while at, say, a New York City street fair. His mother belongs to the same political club I belong to. He represents the New York State Assembly District I live in. And I have voted for Alex Bores.
I am urging you to support Alex Bores for reasons unrelated to what I have said above.
Alex Bores’s campaign to be the Democratic nominee for New York’s 12th Congressional District has national importance. The issue of national importance associated with this campaign is regulating Artificial Intelligence. Alex Bores is a computer guy and he is on the right side of this issue. The New York State legislator most knowledgeable about Artificial Intelligence, Alex Bores, and a colleague in the State Senate led the effort to pass a law regulating AI in New York.
Alex Bores’s New York Assembly website describes New York’s RAISE Act, the AI safety legislation for which Alex Bores and his state senator colleague are largely responsible. The law requires guidelines for Artificial Intelligence. Among the requirements are “safety plans and incident reporting for the most powerful AI models, ensuring New York stays ahead of emerging threats without stifling innovation….” The website adds, in explanation: “AI is evolving faster than any technology in human history, driving scientific advances, developing life-changing medicines, unlocking new creative pathways and automating mundane tasks. But there is also growing consensus amongst experts that, in the wrong hands, it also poses catastrophic risks to humanity.”
We have seen the argument about the potential for catastrophe from Artificial Intelligence play out in the United States’ Defense Department’s decision about which AI firm it would use. The Department’s current firm, Anthropic, wanted its contract with the Defense Department to require human involvement in certain military decisions. Unhappy with Anthropic’s insistence, the Defense Department is dropping the company and turning to Palantir, which will not demand that the Defense Department set limits for the use of its product.
The argument is also being played out in Alex Bores’s campaign for Congress. The PAC created by the corporate leaders of AI, Leading the Future, raised $100 million for their political efforts. Among the founders of the PAC is Joe Lonsdale, a founder of Palantir.
Alex Bores is the first political figure Leading the Future is attacking with the money they raised. Advertisements opposing Alex Bores’ campaign for Congress claim that he worked for Palantir and earned hundreds of thousands of dollars preparing the mechanisms by which ICE is operating. Alex Bores acknowledges his time working for Palantir, but adds that he did not work on ICE related projects. He further explains that he resigned from Palantir when they renewed their contract with ICE.
While the Leading the Future PAC would like to see Alex Bores defeated, they may also be warning politicians around the country that there is a penalty to seeking to regulate AI. Public First PAC takes the opposite position. Its contributor Anthropic has put up $20 million for campaigns to support AI regulation and may provide funds that will find or may have already found their way to Alex Bores’s campaign.
If Leading the Future has made Alex Bores stand out while they singled him out, that could help his campaign a little. What originally looked like a huge field of Democratic candidates, has grown smaller as several candidates have dropped out. Among those remaining are
- Nina Schwalb — a public health expert who was one of the founders of the International Rescue Committee and is the Founding Director of the Women’s Refugee Commission. ($0)
- Attorney Laura Dunn — a nationally known civil and victims’ rights lawyer who has been featured in The National Law Journal, Forbes, and many other publications. ($20,000)
- Attorney George Conway — one of a group of former Republicans who founded the Lincoln Project as part of their escape from the Donald Trump dominated Republican Party. ($0)
- Jack Schlossberg — the grandson of John F. Kennedy ($600,000)
- Micah Lasher– a New York Assemblymen and a former aide to Congressman Jerry Nadler whose retirement has initiated this free for all. Former New York City Mayor and billionaire Michael Bloomfield has announced he would put $5 million toward Lasher’s campaign. ($1.2 million)
- Alex Bores had $2 million in his campaign war chest to start 2026. {The campaign funds each of the other candidates had on January 1, 2026 are listed above in parenthesis. These figures do not include outside spending or PAC money waiting to be spent.)
Polls can tell us where matters stand now: Here are three NY 12 polls from 2026:
- GQR: Schlossberg 23, Conway 16, Bores 11, Lasher 11
- SCR (Paid for by Leading the Future): Schoenberg 23, Conway 13, Bores 11, Lasher 6
- PPP (Paid for by a pro-Bores PAC): Bores 20, Lasher 19, Schlossberg 18, Conway 13.
Alex Bores is 35 with a BA from Cornell and a Master’s Degree in computer science from Georgia Tech. He graduated from Hunter College High School in Manhattan. Palantir was not his first tech job, but it was the one he stayed at longest – four years. At Palantir, before the pandemic, his focus, he reports, was on ways to contain the spread of disease, ways to stop “pill mills,” and the calculation of economic statistics among others projects. He explains that he walked away from the prospect of a life-changing amount of money from Palantir over the issue of continued work for ICE. He went on to manage start-ups before his successful run for the State Assembly in 2022.
If Alex Bores were elected to the United States Congress, he would almost certainly be the most knowledgeable member about Artificial Intelligence. And he would propose guidelines for the regulation of AI. DONATE to his campaign. Alex Bores’s victory would encourage those who can stand up to Palantir and the other powerful corporations that intend to control this tool which will dominate our lives for years to come. This race for Congress is a matter of national importance.
Other New York and New Jersey races
New York 03 Incumbent Democrat Tom Suozzi will face on of three Republican candidates. Tom Suozzi had $3.2 million on January 1. Of the three Republicans running, one had $300,000 the other two had no funds at all to report. You can DONATE to Tom Suozzi’s campaign. See Len’s Political Note #760
New York 04 Incumbent Democrat Laura Gillen has primary opposition and expected to face Republican former Rep Anthony D’Esposito who has not yet announced. Laura Gillen had $2.2 million on January 1. Neither of her primary opponents had significant funds. Nor have any of the Republicans who have announced their candidacy raised any significant funds. Anthony D’Esposito could raise money quickly. DONATE to Laura Gillen’s campaign. See Len’s Political Note #729
New York 18 Incumbent Democrat Patrick Ryan has no primary opposition. He began the year with $2.5 million. Only one Republican has announced – Businessman Sharanjit Singh Thind and he reported no funds. You can DONATE to Patrick Ryan’s campaign.
New York 19 Incumbent Josh Riley has no primary opposition. State Senator Peter Oberacker will be his Republican opponent. Josh Riley began 2026 with $2.4 million. Oberacker began the year with $200,000. You can DONATE to Josh Riley’s campaign. See Len’s Political Note #729
New York 21 Farmer Blake Gendebien planned to run in a special election when Elise Stefanik resigned to be Ambassador ro the UN. That never happened. She is not running in 2026. Blake Gendebien is now running for the 2026 election. He had $2.2 million on January 1 to run for the seat. Blake Gendebien will probably face Businessman Anthony Constantino, who reported that he had $5.5 million on January 1. With those resources Constantino seems the probable Republican nominee. DONATE to Blake Gendebien. See Len’s Political Note #706.
New Jersey 09. Incumbent Nellie Pou won a narrow victory in 2024. She reported $1.3 million on January 1 2026 and has no serious primary opponent. Her likely Republican opponent, City Councilwoman Rosie Pino had $40,000 on January 1. You can DONATE to Nellie Pou’s campaign. See Len’s Political Note #769.
You can DONATE to Kathy Hochul, the incumbent governor of New York whose Republican opponent will be County Executive Bruce Blakeman. I will make recommendations for other New York Congressional districts after the June 23 primary.
