Demos President Heather McGhee released the following statement on the selection of Carl Heastie as the new New York Assembly Speaker:
“We congratulate new Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and look forward to working with him to enact a progressive agenda in NY. In order for our government to serve all the people, we must lift up the voices of regular New Yorkers by matching small donors with limited public funds and put an end to the current system where financial-might-makes-right. Five years after Citizens United, our big money political system is stalling economic mobility for working families and undermining our nation’s struggle for racial equity. This is a moral and ethical choice about whose voices matter, and whose interests are being served by our elected representatives. New Yorkers shouldn’t have to wait until even more of their elected leaders are brought down by big money scandals to get a working government responsive to their needs, and we look forward to working with the Speaker to get this done this year."