Nathalia Fernandez has served in the state Assembly since winning a special election in 2018, representing a district that overlaps with this Senate district in Pelham Parkway and Morris Park. She chairs the Subcommittee on Effective Treatment. Before assuming office, she was the Chief of Staff for her predecessor, Mark Gjnoaj, and the Bronx representative in former Governor Andrew Cuomo’s office. There she worked on paid family leave, the Excelsior Scholarship, and the Downstate Revitalization Initiative. In this campaign, her priorities are to strengthen the small business economy, and improve transportation and public safety. Fernandez supported all of Citizens Union’s policy goals on the candidate questionnaire, except for reducing campaign contribution limits, yet seemed willing to rethink that position during her candidate interview. Citizens Union prefers Fernandez in this race because of her experience, leadership qualities, and understanding of the district.

Christian Amato is the founder and current CEO of Consense Strategies, a digital design and marketing firm that has worked for multiple political campaigns. Previously, Amato managed the digital strategy for Alessandra Biaggi’s campaign in this district. He was appointed as her Deputy Chief of Staff when she won. Amato, who also chairs the Transportation Committee on Community Board 11, prioritizes constituent services and promises to work to provide resources to those in need. Amato says he has long fought for JCOPE reform and assisted Biaggi’s work while she served as Chair of the Ethics Committee. His policy goals emphasize accountability and transparency. While he supports all of Citizens Union’s agenda items and is lauded for his focused campaigning, Citizens Union does not prefer Amato for this race.