Progressive Democrat. Ready to fight.

Sam is an attorney, former prosecutor, community activist, and served as Chair of the Columbia County Democratic Committee.

A lifelong progressive Democrat, Sam has been organizing since he was a teenager. In college, he was a vocal leader against the Iraq War and the Bush administration’s attacks on civil liberties. He launched his campus’s first gay rights organization, traveled the country organizing against same-sex marriage bans, and was elected National Political Director of College Democrats of America.

After college, Sam deepened his commitment to public service. He worked for a Civil Rights Commission, investigating and addressing accessibility concerns. He saw the justice system from both sides—first as a student public defender, then as a student prosecutor. And he also experienced state government up close, writing legal memoranda, staffing legislative committees, and helping advance legislation that saved taxpayers more than $75 million. Sam was also President of his ACLU chapter, the LGBT Student Bar Association, and a leader in the Law Democrats.

After law school, Sam served as a prosecutor in the Bronx District Attorney’s Office. Sam worked in the Domestic Violence and Child Abuse & Sex Crimes Bureaus. He spent his career standing up for people who had been failed by the system. When children and young women needed an advocate, Sam stood with them. In Albany, that experience matters — because the job of an Assembly Member is also to protect the vulnerable, confront broken systems, and demand accountability. Sam is ready to bring that same commitment to the State Assembly.

For the past four years, Sam has led the Columbia County Democratic Committee through one of the most successful periods in its history. Under his leadership, Democrats flipped seats across the county, elected the first Democratic District Attorney in 40 years, and made history by electing New York’s first woman of color Sheriff. Columbia County repeatedly posted some of the highest Democratic turnout rates in the state. Sam also served as Vice Chair of the Democratic Rural Conference and as a member of the New York Democrats' Executive Committee.

Sam continues to show up as an outspoken advocate for economic justice, immigrant rights, women’s rights, LGBTQ+ rights, and labor unions - all interconnected human rights issues. He has called for the immediate passage of NY4All. He is a strong supporter of the New York Health Act.  Sam has participated in rallies and advocacy for the full funding and implementation of the NYS Climate Law and the rapid transition to renewable energy.

Sam lives in Claverack with his husband, Ted, and their golden retriever, Velma.