Joyce Xiaoqiong Xie is a financial services professional and Democratic District Leader in Brooklyn. She fully supported Citizens Union’s reform agenda on our questionnaire, opposed the proposed redistricting constitutional amendment, and identified semi-open primaries as her top good-government priority, noting that language barriers and party affiliation requirements keep some voters out of primaries. However, Citizens Union has concerns about her support as District Leader for recent Brooklyn Democratic Party rule changes that CU has criticized as anti-democratic, and she defended this position during her interview. We therefore issue no endorsement in this race.

Assemblymember Lester Chang is a retired U.S. Navy Reserve officer who was first elected to the Assembly in 2022. He emphasized his hands-on constituent services and his work representing the district as a member of the legislative minority. He opposed the proposed redistricting constitutional amendment and supports super PAC donor disclosure and lower contribution limits for lobbyists. However, he diverged from Citizens Union on several key issues, opposing the state’s public matching funds program, supporting voter ID requirements, and opposing giving the Civilian Complaint Review Board access to sealed police disciplinary records when necessary. He also submitted a questionnaire, leaving 16 of the 19 yes-or-no questions blank. Citizens Union appreciates his service and his commitment to his constituents, but we issue no endorsement in this race.