Assemblymember Amanda Septimo is latest Torres challenger
Assemblymember Amanda Septimo, a South Bronx-native and representative since 2021, announced her campaign for Congress, becoming the sixth candidate in the race for Rep. Richie Torres’ seat.
The 34-year-old progressive Democrat is running on safer streets, affordable housing and clean air, as well as creating more jobs and support for small businesses.
Septimo told The Press that Riverdale voters should know she aims to be a representative that understands all perspectives, and is looking forward to getting to know the neighborhood and the needs of its residents better.
After attending a recent event with a local political organization, she said some constituents expressed concern for the dynamic developing between Torres and congressional candidate Michael Blake. Blake, a critic of Israeli military action during the Israel-Hamas war, has targeted Torres’ pro-Israel platform since announcing his campaign in November.
“Israel is an important issue,” Septimo said. “But it’s not why I’m running for the Bronx for Congress.”
Another worry Riverdale constituents expressed was that they feel "squeezed," unable to keep up with the rising cost of living despite being considered middle-class. Those challenges are not unique to the area, Septimo explained.
“Ultimately, people want to feel safe and be able to afford their bills,” the assemblymember said. “They want to be able to live in a community that feels like it’s thriving. Whether you’re in Riverdale or in the South Bronx, that feels like a universal truth.”
The 15th Congressional District is one of the poorest in the nation, a label Septimo said she doesn't often mention. This is something she learned from former Rep. José Serrano, the long-serving Democrat that Torres succeeded. After graduating from Vanderbilt University, Septimo worked under Serrano as a community liaison and later as a district director.
“People use that phrase deriding the Bronx and sort of describing us as this place of despair,” Septimo said. “There are many people struggling, but [Serrano] always said it’s an honor to represent people who are poor because they have so much need. With that need comes so much trust — to trust you to be someone who would actually do something to change it.”
She added, the borough’s story as a place of hardship and struggle is one that needs to be interrupted. Residents know that narrative, and instead should be told what progress will be made. Calling it the “poorest congressional district” feels like a slogan to build a political platform on, not an effort to connect with constituents.
Septimo said she advocates for solutions that are creative. In 2023, after a rise in violent incidents in and around bodegas, she spearheaded the Small Business Security Initiative. The pilot program provided grants for storeowners to buy panic buttons and updated security cameras throughout the South Bronx, Harlem and Washington Heights.
“It started with a conversation and a problem in the community, flowed its way to a solution and ended in a policy,” Septimo said.
Air quality has also been a focus throughout her time in office. She sponsored a bill in 2021 that looked to reduce air pollutants in the Bronx by repainting petroleum tanks a lighter color. When these metal containers, which store liquids like crude oil and gasoline, were painted dark colors, it increased the temperature and emitted harmful vapors. Facilities that store petroleum tanks in bulk are located near low-income communities and communities of color, making it a matter of environmental justice. The law went into effect in January of last year.
Similarly in 2023, she helped secure $130 million to modernize the Hunts Point Produce Market. Changes made will help alleviate emissions from large refrigeration units that are diesel-powered, as well as encourage the use of electric-run freight trucks.
The assemblymember aims to “play offense” as a Democrat on the federal level, saying the party is currently “defense-oriented.” To her, this looks like calling for an expansion of the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program, or the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program, known as food stamps.
She has ideas to target the city’s Area Median Income measures, which are used to determine who qualifies for affordable housing. In areas like the northwest Bronx, where income varies drastically between Riverdale and surrounding neighborhoods, the median can be skewed. Instead, eligibility could be assessed using more localized benchmarks, such as zipcodes.
“In an effort to standardize support across the country, which I understand the need for, we sort of rob the nuances that would actually lead to real help for people,” Septimo explained.
As an assemblymember, Septimo has seen little controvery. Although, in 2023 City & State reported she hadn’t filed her campaign finance reports for nearly five years, adding there had been no enforcement from the Board of Elections. Septimo responded at the time, and also told The Press, that it was unintentional. Her treasurer was not a trained accountant, and the team fell short on reporting funds.
Now, the choice to run for Congress was not a watershed moment, but instead what felt like a “slow drip of neglect.” After waiting for change to come, Septimo asked herself, “What are you gonna do about it?”
In the borough, she sees people who care about each other, who know how to make a lot happen with a little, and who find ways to show up for one another — “community in its purest form,” the candidate said.
“I know how special it is to be from the Bronx,” Septimo told The Press. “I am also acutely aware of how much untapped potential our community has, because we really are just trapped in a set of circumstances that don’t allow the immense talent that exists to thrive … I’m really committed to changing that.”
