Samantha Kattan, a tenant organizer and a member of the New York City chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), officially launched her campaign Wednesday night to succeed Assembly Member Claire Valdez in the 37th Assembly District. Valdez, a fellow DSA member, will vacate the seat at the end of the year after launching a campaign to succeed U.S. Rep. Nydia Velázquez in the soon-to-be-vacant 7th Congressional District earlier in January. Kattan filed with the State Board of Elections at the end of December and held an official campaign launch party at the Windjammer in Ridgewood on Wednesday evening. Pia Rahman, a former DSA member who recently served as campaign manager for Assembly candidate Brian Romero, has also filed to run for the seat. Almost all DSA candidates are running against traditional progressive candidates who appear ideologically aligned on a number of key issues, but Kattan asserted that DSA candidates’ commitment to running as part of a movement “sets them apart” from traditional progressives.