The race for New York’s 95th State Assembly District — which covers portions of Westchester and Putnam counties, including Peekskill, Cortlandt and Ossining — pits incumbent Democrat Dana Levenberg of Ossining, who is seeking her third two-year term, against Republican Laurie Ryan, a Cortlandt Manor resident. A small portion of Halston Media’s coverage area in Cortlandt Manor falls within the district. We sent each candidate written questions. Their responses are unedited except for formatting. (Candidates are listed in alphabetical order.)
Raised in Teaneck, New Jersey, Levenberg holds a bachelor’s degree in international relations from Brown University. She worked in advertising and television production in New York City before becoming active in community advocacy. She served as chief of staff to former Assemblywoman Sandy Galef, spent nine years on the Ossining school board and served as Ossining town supervisor from 2016 to 2022. She was elected to the state Assembly in 2022.
What are the most important issues facing the 95th Assembly District, and why are you the most qualified to address them? The 95th Assembly District is a diverse, beautiful collection of communities along the Hudson River. It is a desirable place to live, and relatively expensive as a result. Affordability is one of our biggest challenges, as is sustainability. Our proximity to the Hudson River and other bodies of water gives us many opportunities for recreation and tourism, but also a higher than average flooding risk. So it is important for us to protect our natural assets and the resilience of our infrastructure in the face of a changing climate.
I am the most qualified candidate in this race because I understand these realities and have the experience, temperament, and skills required to deliver results. My public service began with local community work while my children were young. That experience led to advocacy, public service, and elected positions, including serving as chief of staff to former Assemblywoman Sandy Galef, three terms on the Ossining School Board, and being elected to four terms as Ossining Town Supervisor before my 2022 election to the Assembly.
If elected, what will be your top priorities over the next year? In a third term, I will continue listening to constituents and addressing key needs. I will focus on lowering home energy costs with further reforms to rein in utility companies, funding for household transitions from expensive fossil fuels, and legislation to encourage the deployment of low-cost renewable energy. I will also address housing, healthcare, and childcare affordability while defending our democracy, safety, and community values against harmful federal policies. I hope to earn your vote, and invite you to learn more at danaforassembly.com.
On a personal level, what is the most important piece of advice you have received? My grandmother shared advice I carry daily: “A no you have, a yes you can get!” In public service, one must constantly ask for information, constituent assistance, legislative consideration, and funding. Following my grandmother’s wisdom drives my success, as I refuse to accept the default “no.”
Since 2023, nearly two dozen of my prime-sponsored bills have become law. We are repairing state roads and bridges while securing record levels of education funding and millions in infrastructure spending. This includes $585,000 in grants for Yorktown organizations like the fire and EMS departments, your local school districts, and the John C. Hart Library. We achieved this while simultaneously lowering middle-class income tax rates to 70-year lows and expanding child tax credits. I also served as an intervenor in the most recent Con Edison rate cases alongside several of my colleagues in the Legislature, during which I learned a lot about why our utility rates are so high. We succeeded in getting Con Ed to back off of their original double-digit increases, and harnessed the outrage generated by this rate case to successfully push for utility reform in this year’s budget. These changes will help us get our sky-high utility rates under control in the coming years. Dozens of organizations have endorsed my re-election in recognition of my record; you can view them at danaforassembly.com/endorsements.
Laurie Ryan has been a Westchester resident for 60 years, including 33 years in Cortlandt Manor. A retired high school math teacher and department chair, she established a partnership with Westchester Community College that allowed students to earn college credits while in high school and developed mentoring programs. She said many of her former students call her “mom.”
Ryan holds bachelor's degrees in graphic design and mathematics from Pace University, master's degrees in education and mathematics from Manhattanville College, and a school leadership certification from the College of New Rochelle. She also served 12 years as an elected Hendrick Hudson Board of Education trustee, helping negotiate bargaining agreements, pass 12 budgets and five bond measures, and improve community communication. Ryan previously ran unsuccessfully for Cortlandt supervisor and Westchester County Legislator in District 9.
What are the most important issues facing the 95th Assembly District, and why are you the most qualified to address them? Under nearly two decades of one-party rule, New York's state budget has grown by more than $100 billion over five years. Utility costs have risen sharply, taxes continue to burden families and businesses, and public safety policies have raised serious concerns.
Residents deserve affordable energy, responsible government spending, meaningful tax relief, safe communities, and timely infrastructure improvements.
My experience in policy, finance, facilities planning, negotiations, and emergency management has prepared me to address these challenges with practical solutions and fiscal responsibility. I understand the importance of careful budgeting, long-term planning, emergency preparedness, and finding common ground to achieve results.
I will push for greater transparency in state spending, policies that improve energy affordability, stronger cooperation between law enforcement agencies, and infrastructure projects completed efficiently. My experience negotiating budgets and labor agreements has taught me to balance competing needs, ask tough questions, and focus on measurable results for taxpayers.
If elected, what will be your top priorities over the next year? Through two surveys, I asked voters about their biggest concerns. Their leading priorities were energy and utility costs, illegal immigration, state and local taxes, government spending, crime and public safety, and infrastructure. These priorities will be mine.
On a personal level, what is the most important piece of advice you have received? My husband often reminds me, “Laurie, you are the most caring person I know, the most hardworking person I know, and the most loving person I know. Just trust yourself and do what you think is right. Do it like a mom.”
Those words mean everything to me. As a teacher, school board trustee, and community advocate, I have tried to lead with care, hard work, and conviction. To me, “do it like a mom” means listening, protecting what matters, looking out for others, and making decisions with both my head and my heart. That is the approach I will bring to representing the 95th Assembly District.
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