Hakeem Jeffries

Hakeem Jeffries (born 1970) is the Assemblyman in New York's 57th Assembly District.

Early career

Jeffries holds a degree from New York University School of Law as well as a Master's Degree in Public Policy from Georgetown University and a Bachelor's in Political Science from Binghamton University where he graduated with honors for outstanding academic achievement. He served as litigation counsel for a media and entertainment company, and worked in the litigation department of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison and as a clerk for Judge Harold Baer, Jr..

Before being elected in 2006, Jeffries was an active participant in community affairs within this Assembly District and had made two previous attempts at winning the district. In 2000, he challenged the incumbent Assemblyman Roger Green in the primary, winning 41% of the vote. In 2002, his residence was redistricted out of the 57th district in what he described as a retaliatory move (a charge denied by Green), as described in the 2010 documentary film Gerrymandering.

State Assembly career

Jeffries defeated Bill Batson by a margin of 64%-25% in September 2006.

During his three years in the legislature he...
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