David Pechefsky

Pechefsky favors a single payer health care system and free higher education. He supports a $15 minimum wage and paid parental leave. He opposed the Iraq War and is against unnecessary military spending. Pechefsky wants to reduce reliance on fossil fuels, increase investments in solar and wind power, and favors major investments in infrastructure and housing. He is for immigration reform with a path to citizenship for those contributing to the society. He supports a full fight for the LGBTQ community and sensible gun safety reforms. He opposes racial discrimination in the justice system and wants improved alternatives to incarceration. He also says women should have a right to choose on health issues including abortion, which he said should be safe, legal and rare, and have access to birth control.

Pechefsky, 50, of Port Jefferson, is making his first bid for Congress. He has run in the past for the New York City Council as a Green Party candidate. He is a graduate of Hunter College, where he majored in political science, and has a master’s degree in international development from American University in Washington, D.C. He was as a staff member for a decade for the New York City Council, working on housing, economic development and human services programs. Pechefsky has worked as a consultant in Liberia helping establish a congressional budget office, and also helped Somalia strengthen its parliament. He is currently on leave as senior adviser with Generation Citizen, a nonprofit that trains college students to become democracy coaches. Pechefsky is married with two daughters.