Candidate Answers to JOLDC: Kellie Leeson for NY Assembly District 73
Candidate Name: Kellie Leeson
Office Seeking Election for: NY Assembly District 73
Website: https://kellieforassembly.com/
1. Explain, based on life experiences and accomplishments, why you believe you are best qualified to represent your district.
In a 20-year career delivering critical programs to the most vulnerable to rebuild their lives in humanitarian contexts, I have seen firsthand what it looks like when leaders do not stand up for their citizens, the harm that is done when segments of a community are excluded, and the distrust that grows when corruption and greed are left unaddressed, and inequality is left unchecked. I see these same issues on the rise here in New York – and I am compelled to act.
While in senior leadership roles at the International Rescue Committee, a New York-based humanitarian agency, I worked in difficult and high-pressure overseas situations. I balanced the day-to-day management of lifesaving programs in the midst of a drought, post-election conflict, and disease outbreaks -- all while finding ways to improve our work. In Kenya, we partnered with poverty alleviation and human rights allies to win legislative victories that expanded refugee space and blocked harmful government actions through strategic litigation. By developing internal allies, I created initiatives that have become mainstream practices at IRC, one of the global leaders in humanitarian assistance. Most recently, I founded a global initiative that includes UNHCR, the state department, and partners around the world to change policy and practice for refugee response mechanisms to assist refugees in rebuilding their lives.
I moved to NYC nine years ago and jumped into causes I care about, starting with protesting the egregious violence that led to the killing of Eric Garner and the lack of police accountability for their actions. After years of living abroad, it was protesting that helped to remind me of my power as a citizen speaking with my own voice on my own behalf about what I expect from my government. Protesting was an entry point. In 2016, with a deep understanding of what was at risk with Donald Trump on the ballot, I volunteered for the Clinton campaign. Trump's election was every bit as devastating as expected and reminded me that local grassroots action was the starting point for change. I joined the POST Act surveillance working group to push for police transparency. As a founding member and leader at Empire State Indivisible we have focused on collective action to create a more equitable city, state and federal government. In our first two years, we helped to crush the IDC and win a supermajority in the state senate in support of progressive candidates.
A return to the pre-pandemic status quo is no longer acceptable, and we must meet this moment with compassion and a commitment to fairness – ensuring people have basic health care, a roof over their head, income security, and safe living conditions. In this city, we have the ideas, the innovation, and the grit to achieve great outcomes, but it is achievable only if we fight for it.
2. Please identify any openly LGBTQ candidates for public office you have previously or presently endorsed? As a leader and part of Empire State Indivisible we endorsed Mondaire Jones.
3. If applicable what legislation directly affecting the LGBTQ community have you introduced or co-sponsored? Not applicable – this is the candidates first run for office.
4. What LGBTQ organizations have you been involved with, either on a volunteer or professional basis? As part of Empire State Indivisible we have been in coalitions with numerous diverse organizations including LGBTQ organizations such as Housing Works, Revolting Lesbians, Equality New York, and Gays Against Guns.
5. If applicable, what LGBTQ organizations have you allocated funds to? N/A
6. Do you consider yourself a member of the LGBTQ community? I consider myself an ally of the LGBTQ community.
7. Have you marched in any Pride parades? Which marches and for approximately how many years? I have attended and joined the parade many years since I moved to NYC in 2013.
8. Have you employed openly LGBTQ individuals previously? Do you employ any currently? Yes. Currently I am a consultant so do not employ anyone.
9. If you receive the Jim Owles endorsement, do you agree to identify the club on all literature and electronic materials where you list endorsements? Yes.
10. What press conferences, demonstrations, rallies and protests in support of LGBTQ issues, pro choice legislation, criminal justice reform issues and the Resist Trump Movement have you attended and/or participated in? Too numerous to count - I protested in Washington DC multiple times, including against the Brett Kavanaugh nomination, Women’s Marches and in NYC I have protested in support of criminal justice reform, immigrant rights, reproductive rights, LGBTQ rights, climate action, election reform, etc, etc.
11. Have you ever been arrested in pursuit of legislation or for protesting an injustice? Please elaborate. Yes, I was arrested in 2015 protesting the passing of a full year with no justice for Eric Garner’s murder.
12. If you are an incumbent, what have you accomplished in your most recent term? N/A
13. For the following pieces of legislation, please answer if you are currently a sponsor or co-sponsor (if you are an incumbent), or if you will co-sponsor (if you are not an incumbent):
A. Fair and Timely Parole (S.1415A / A.4231A): A bill pending in Albany that would ensure access to the parole release process for incarcerated people in New York State. This bill insures that decisions on parole are not solely based on the nature of the original crimes but includes incarcerated peoples’ record of rehabilitation and assessment of current risk to public safety. I will co-sponsor and champion.
B. Elder Parole (S.15A / A.3475A): A bill pending in Albany that would allow elderly incarcerated people who have served at least 15 years in prison an opportunity to appear before the Parole Board for a chance at release. I will co-sponsor and champion.
14. If you will not co-sponsor any of the above legislation, why not?
15. Do you oppose the efforts to weaken bail reform as written. Yes.
16. Do you commit to visiting constituents who are incarcerated in state prisons and city jails? If incumbent, when did you do so last? Yes, absolutely.
17. Do you support legislation outlawing solitary confinement in all prisons statewide including city jails? Yes. It is torture and shameful.
18. When was the last time you were inside a correctional facility. I have not been inside a correctional facility.
19. Do you believe sincere remorse and actions taken while incarcerated should be considered over the original crime in determinations of parole? Yes.
20. What do you believe should be done to ensure more clemencies are granted every year? One mechanism to ensure more clemencies is to allocate resources to assist prisoners to submit petitions to have their sentences commuted. More resources should be provided to assist prisoners to submit petitions to have their sentences commuted.
21. Will you publicly call on the governor to use her clemency power for the many incarcerated New Yorkers who can safely return home? Will you tweet out your support for this or issue a public statement? Would you be willing to be critical of a governor who does not exercise their power to grant clemencies and commutations to those worthy of release? Have you ever spoken out in such a way? Yes, I would actively and publicly call on the governor to use her clemency power and am willing to be critical, as needed.
22. Have you participated in any demonstrations or protests concerning clemency and parole? Yes.
23. Will you affirmatively seek to hire formerly incarcerated individuals? Yes.
24. Do you support legislation to prohibit discrimination against formerly incarcerated people in housing and employment? Yes.
25. Do you believe in the decriminalization of sex work? Are you or will you co-sponsor the bill introduced by Julia Salazar (S.6419 / A. 8230), which fully decriminalizes sex work? Yes.
26. Will you actively oppose legislation (S.6040 / A.7069) that would implement the dangerous Nordic model instead of the decriminalization of prostitution? Explain in detail your views on full decriminalization, the Nordic model, legalization, and the existing criminalization approach. Yes.
The “Nordic model” aims to end sex work by killing the demand for transactional sex without prosecuting the sex worker. I support full decriminalization rather than the Nordic model because research shows that full decriminalization is a more effective approach to protecting sex workers’ rights and is consistent with what sex workers themselves usually want and we should continue to listen to the sex workers themselves. The Nordic model has been shown to make it harder for sex workers to find safe places to work, unionize, and advocate for their rights, it stigmatizes and marginalizes sex workers and leaves them vulnerable to violence and abuse by police as their work and their clients are still criminalized.
27. Do you support ending qualified immunity for police and other law enforcement individuals? Yes.
28. What proposals will you advocate for to protect immigrants and further New York as a “Sanctuary State”? I fully supported the Protect Our Courts Act that passed last year and support the New York for All.
29. Are you a sponsor of New York's Medical Aid in Dying Act (A.4321a/S.6471)? If not will you add your name and sponsor? Yes.
29. Do you support the establishment of supervised drug consumption spaces? Yes, we can also learn from the most recently established spaces.
30. Have you ever endorsed any member of the IDC or any candidates who challenged IDC members? Please identify all candidates. With Empire State Indivisible, I helped to crush the IDC and win a supermajority in the state senate in support of progressive candidates. I actively worked on many campaigns but most notably State Senator Alessandra Biaggi who has already endorsed me and State Senator Zellnor Myrie, among others like Senator Robert Jackson, Senator John Liu, and Senator Rachel May.
31. Will you commit to ensuring diverse LGBTQ representation among your staff? Yes.
32. Who did you support for office in the following primaries or special elections: A) Mayor in 2021 - Maya Wiley B) President in 2016 and 2020: Hilary Clinton (2016); I was an volunteer for two months with Elizabeth Warren’s primary campaign, and then an active campaigner for Joe Biden. C) Governor and Attorney General in 2018? Cynthia Nixon and Zephyr Teachout
33. Have you made an endorsement in the current bid for Governor? If so, who? No
34. Do you support term limits for statewide office holders? For State Legislators? Yes and yes.
35. Describe any legislation and policy changes that you support in order to address the ongoing effects of slavery, racism, colonialism, and discrimination. The ongoing effects of slavery, racism, colonialism, and discrimination need to be addressed through numerous policy avenues to support both political and economic rights and power. First and foremost, we need to protect the right to vote and make it as easy as possible for people to vote in this state. Great efforts are now underway to address voting and election challenges at the state level and I support these efforts including the passage of NYS John Lewis Voting Rights Act. Investing in all New Yorkers through the passage of Universal Child Care, a New Deal for CUNY/SUNY, protecting housing through Good Cause Eviction, investing in the CLCPA are efforts to begin to address these ongoing effects.
36. What legislation or other policy changes do you support in order to make college and graduate school affordable for poor, working-class, and middle-class Americans and to alleviate the crushing loan debt that many students and alumni are facing? I support the New Deal for CUNY, increasing the TAP program and establishing a student loan debt relief program.
37. Do you support a single-payer universal health care system? Do you or will you co-sponsor the New York Health Act? Please elaborate. Yes. I support single payer health care.
38. Discuss your stance on reproductive rights, including access to contraceptives and abortion services. I am passionate advocate for reproductive rights including access to abortion services and contraceptive services. While New York has passed comprehensive abortion rights legislation and expanded access to abortion care – the past two years have shown how diligent advocates and activists need to be in protecting these hard-won gains.
39. Will you refuse money from individuals or Political Action Committees representing the real estate industry or law enforcement unions/associations? Yes.
40. Will you refuse and refund any contributions from executives at corporations complicit in the Trump agenda? Yes.
41. Will you cosponsor the legislation to prohibit evictions without good cause (S.3082 / A.5573)? Yes.
42. Will you push for the passage of Home Stability Support (HSS) to bridge the difference between the public assistance shelter allowance and fair market rents for NY's 95,000 homeless? Will you co-sponsor S.856 / A.6032, which amends the Social Services Law to create a statewide rent supplement for families and individuals who are eligible for public assistance benefits and who face eviction, homelessness, or loss of housing due to domestic violence or hazardous living conditions? Yes.
43. What should happen to 421-a? Would you end it, mend it, continue it? End it.
44. Do you support legalizing accessory dwelling units? Yes. We have a huge housing shortage so we must find ways to expand housing options/access.
45. Do you support more state funding for NYCHA? If so, how much? We have to properly fund affordable housing that goes without saying and we have to address the accountability issue to maintain quality public housing. Additionally, we must make connections among the numerous state and city programs as example NYCHA should be top of the list for swift clean energy and electrification programs.
46. Do you, or will you, co-sponsor the Climate and Community Investment Act? (S.4264A / A.6967) If you are an incumbent and do not currently co-sponsor this bill, why not? Yes, and climate action is a key pillar of my platform.
47. Do you support the New York Public Banking Act (S.1762A / A. 8290? If you are an incumbent and do not currently co-sponsor this bill, why not? Yes.
48. Do you support the New Deal for CUNY (S.4461 / A.5843)? If you are an incumbent and do not currently co-sponsor this bill, why not? Yes.
49. In view of the fact that Ed Koch has been documented to have caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people with AIDS, and was blatantly racist, would you support a city bill to rename the former Queensboro Bridge? Do you authorize the use of your name for such a purpose? Yes
50. What is your position on removing the Christopher Columbus statue in Columbus Circle and if so, what should replace it? Remove it.
51. Do you support reducing the budget of law enforcement throughout the state, and if so, by how much?
52. We need to rethink the duties of law enforcement which would lead to a corresponding budget reduction. Resources should be reinvested where they will be most effective to address the health, safety and security of our communities. Mental health issues should be handled by mental health professionals, increased support to domestic violence survivors could change the need for law enforcement, and speeding could be handled with speed cameras.
52. Are you in favor of removing police from any of the following? a) Schools; b) Mental health response calls; c) Homeless outreach and social services; or d) Traffic enforcement. Yes to all.
53. Should law enforcements "Vice Squads" be eliminated? Yes.
54. How would you recommend law enforcement officers be penalized for refusing to wear masks in public while on duty, in defiance of city and state rules? They should be given a warning. Suspended if the habit continues.
55. What reforms would you make to the Civilian Complaint Review Board? Would you support state legislation to make CCRB disciplinary determinations binding? Independence, the CCRB should be making the determination on action not the police commissioner. Yes
56. What will you do to support nightlife in New York State? We need to support businesses that have been heavily burdened through Covid with clear guidance and grants to address their businesses expenses including staggering rent costs and easily to access business interruption support. The State Liquor Authority should not be complicated but should be a helpful business partner to assist businesses to be in compliance and be successful.
57. Do you commit to speak with restaurant and nightlife industry representatives before taking a position on any policies that affect their businesses? Yes, will be critical to identify ways to support New York’s small businesses.
58. Do you commit to speak personally with liquor license applicants and license holders before opposing any bid for a liquor license? Likewise for an applicant seeking your support? Yes.
59. What are the top 3 issues you aim to address locally and legislatively? Government accountability, climate, and supporting NY families.
60. How much money do you presently have in your campaign account? I raised over $50,000 in my first three weeks.
61. What additional information would you like members The Jim Owles Liberal Democratic Club to consider when we are making our endorsement decision concerning your candidacy?
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