As early voting begins for the June 2026 Democratic primary, the Bronx Times interviewed the two candidates running for District 81 seat in the New York State Assembly.
District 81 represents the Bronx neighborhoods of Woodlawn, Norwood, Riverdale, Kingsbridge, Wakefield, Van Cortlandt Village, Marble Hill and Spuyten Duyvil.
The candidates are Jeffrey Dinowitz, the longtime incumbent who has served since 1994, and Morgan Evers, a school teacher, community organizer, and disability rights advocate.
Dinowitz is a prominent figure in local politics and is endorsed by Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson, Congressman Ritchie Torres (NY-15), Congressman Adriano Espaillat (NY-13), Council Member Eric Dinowitz, State Senator Jamaal T. Bailey, the Benjamin Franklin Reform Club, the New York League of Conservation Voters and the New York Immigration Coalition, among others.
Evers, whose campaign is powered by grassroots efforts, is endorsed by the New York Working Families Party (WFP), State Senators Gustavo Rivera and Robert Jackson, former NY Attorney General Oliver Koppell, the Unity Democratic Club, Jim Owles Liberal Democratic Club, Eleanor’s Legacy and Run for Something.
If elected, Evers would be the first blind woman elected to the New York State Legislature.
Jeffrey Dinowitz’ campaign
Dinowitz said that his campaign has been “overwhelmingly positive” because a lot of people know him and are aware of his track record in the communities.
“My work with housing over the years and helping tenants [with] tenant organizing, or the legislation I passed including the eviction moratorium during the pandemic that protected a lot of people,” Dinowitz told the Bronx Times. “It saved thousands of people from being evicted at the worst possible time. And I think housing issues seem to resonate a lot, especially in some areas more so than in others.”
Dinowitz gave examples of why he believes voters are confident in his campaign.
He said his lobbying efforts secured a 100% toll rebate for Bronx residents on the Henry Hudson Bridge, securing $10 million in capital funding for the Amalgamated Housing Cooperative in Van Cortlandt, and $1 million for Park Reservoir, the first Mitchell-Lama co-op.
Dinowitz told the Bronx Times that residents have expressed concerns of rising costs specifically for insurance rates.
“The insurance costs are runaway costs and my concern is that it’ll drive some people out. I don’t think people are running away from the city because they don’t like it here,” Dinowitz said. “A lot of people just cannot afford to stay, especially working-class families – they’re the ones who are leaving. The biggest component of the cost of living is housing costs.”
Housing is a major focus of his campaign because his experience living in all types of housing has “given him an appreciation and insight into what goes on here,” he said.
He describes his campaign in three words: visible, coalition and outreach.
His work and advocacy for tenants, immigration, labor unions, the environment and women’s health and reproductive issues have gained the support of various groups.
“We built what I consider a very powerful coalition throughout each of the neighborhoods in my district. I try to make sure that I’m all over the place and that my priorities are reflected in the work that we do, and I think that’s why we get such a positive response from people when we’re campaigning,” Dinowitz said.
Morgan Evers’ campaign
Evers’ campaign is unique for many reasons. She is a mother of two boys, an educator of 20 years who teaches during the day, and canvasses in the evening right after she leaves the classroom.
She’s rooted in community leadership and her experience in the state committee allowed her to build connections with people across the district.
Evers told the Bronx Times that she’s received a “really warm response” from voters during her canvassing efforts.
“I’ve had a lot of people be very responsive to me and excited for change since we’ve had the same assembly member for 32 years,” Evers said. “People are very interested and open to this campaign, especially pertaining to issues that have been a persistent problem for a while now like our empty storefronts.”
“I’m legally blind so having essential services in your neighborhood – things like a pharmacy, things like a grocery store even though their businesses, they can also be considered essential services for people who are disabled, or even seniors who can’t travel very far or don’t have access to transportation… people who don’t have access to cars,” she added.
Evers said that there’s been a big push in Wakefield for more dine-in restaurants and an issue of empty storefronts in Riverdale.
One of her top priorities in Albany is to use the Minority and Women-Owned Business Enterprise Program to help small businesses secure grants and incentives, or a vacancy tax.
The second issue Evers underscored was affordability among childcare costs. She shared a personal experience of putting childcare costs on a credit card and going into debt for five years because of how expensive it was.
She wants to fight for equitable access to universal child care across the Bronx.
“I think we should be proactive on these solutions, so we have problems with affordability right now [and] we can’t wait. We have to get down to work and find solutions,” Evers said.
She wants to focus on tenants rights and immigration rights, highlighting the recent fires and her anti-ICE efforts.
“We’ve had a lot of fires here in the Bronx and landlords who are neglecting their responsibility, like providing heat, to fix leaky pipes, keeping doors secured and closed. I think that they need to be held criminally accountable,” Evers said.
In November, she organized a bystander training at her synagogue, which was around the time ICE was in Minnesota. She wanted to be proactive because she heard rumors that ICE was coming to NYC next.
“I think that it’s really important that we are protecting our neighbors. New York City is a place built by immigrants for generations, and what ICE is doing, it’s not civil immigration enforcement, they’re just terrorizing our neighbors,” Evers said.
Another issue that Evers wants to focus on is protecting the disabled community amid the Trump Administration’s rollback of disability rights with the recent Social Security Administration changes.
“We really have an opportunity here in New York State to fight these rollbacks, and we need solutions to that right now. We can’t wait. We have to be proactive,” Evers said. “For example, like what we did with Roe v. Wade, how we codified that, so then when it was rolled back, New York was safe.”
She described her campaign as “solutions to the affordability crisis and protecting civil rights.”
Reach Keke Grant-Floyd at kekegfreports@gmail.com. For more coverage, subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram!
