Representative Grace Meng is pulling in more support in her race against progressive insurgent Chuck Park. AP file photo by Mariam Zuhaib/Photo via Park campaign 
By Ryan Schwach
Queens Representative Grace Meng was endorsed by retiring Congresswoman Nydia Velázquez on Monday as she continues to draw support in her reelection bid against an insurgent progressive in New York’s 6th Congressional District.
Velázquez is the latest powerful New York Democrat to back Meng’s reelection campaign against progressive candidate Chuck Park. Park, a former political staffer and organizer, is the only legitimate opponent Meng has faced since she was elected. However, it is not clear if the insurgent will have enough juice to truly threaten the powerful incumbent, who has served as an elected official in Queens for nearly 20 years.
“There is no one better to represent all New Yorkers than Grace Meng,” Velázquez said in a statement. “Her dedication to Queens is second to none, and I am proud to endorse her for reelection.”
“Over the last decade, I have had the pleasure of standing next to Grace as we worked together to support the immigrant communities, small businesses, and working families that make up our districts in Queens,” the retiring member added. “She is a strong advocate who never wavers in a fight for her constituents.”
Meng has represented the Flushing-centered 6th Congressional District since 2013. She previously represented the area in the State Assembly in a district once represented by her father, Jimmy Meng.
A moderate Democrat, Meng has had little challenge from within her own party as she grew in popularity to become one of the more well-known and senior members of the Queens political delegation.
Chuck Park is running against Rep. Grace Meng in the 6th Congressional District. Photo via campaign
In addition to Velázquez, Meng has support from the major establishment faces in her Flushing-based district and across Queens, but also the progressive wing like State Senator John Liu and Councilmember Shekar Krishnan.
Krishnan’s endorsement was particularly notable, because Park was his former chief of staff.
Park, a Flushing born son of Korean immigrants, launched his campaign as a progressive, anti-establishment foil to Meng’s more than 15 years of staunch mainstream Democratic support.
Although the young insurgent has struggled to pick up steam, he has scored some minor endorsements, but none from any major local figures or prominent donors.
According to the most recent campaign finance data, which covers donations for the last three months of 2025, Meng raised $919,456 to Park’s $140,000.
Park told the Eagle he never expected to challenge Meng in endorsements or funding, but hoped to compete with her on the ground with door-knocking and community advocacy.
“She has political connections, our campaign has the people,” he said.
Park is attempting to run a staunchly progressive campaign more aligned with the democratic socialist ideas that propelled Zohran Mamdani to victory in November.
He has criticized Meng for taking money from wealthy donors and lobbying groups, and has highlighted her relationship with pro-Israel lobbying group AIPAC.
It’s unclear if his messaging will work in NY-6.
Political strategist Trip Yang, who has worked on campaigns in and around Flushing for years, doesn’t think Park’s pitch will resonate with the district’s voters.
“He’s running in an imaginary, leftist DSA district,” Yang, who has donated money to Meng’s campaign, told the Eagle. “He’s running an activist online vibes campaign that might be effective if he were a DSA member, running an imaginary DSA district, but he’s not a DSA member, and there’s no imaginary DSA district.”
Although Mamdani won the congressional district in the June primary, he did so by less than a percentage point. In November, former Governor Andrew Cuomo carried the district by 10 points.
Yang thinks the ball game is already over for Park, and predicted that Meng will win by 30 or 40 points in June.
“There’s some online chatter, but what we’ve seen is online chatter by itself is not enough to propel a campaign,” he said. “You do need political support, and crucially, you need fundraising to get your message out.”
Earlier this month, it seemed for a moment Park was primed for a campaign spark with an endorsement from the powerful Working Families Party.
A WFP endorsement would have legitimized his campaign, and injected it with funding and manpower from what could be considered the third most powerful party in New York State.
“I was very confident,” he told the Eagle, remembering that he thought his campaign had shown true viability.
Despite receiving overwhelming support from the local Queens branch of the WFP and affiliate groups, the statewide WFP declined to back Park.
Park believes that the WFP was lobbied away from supporting his campaign, costing him the endorsement.
He told the Eagle he was disappointed by the outcome.
“I have no gripes with the power and the face of the Working Families Party,” he said. “I am, frankly, disappointed with the decisions of the leadership.”
Spokespeople for the WFP did not respond to requests for comment, and members of the Queens WFP branch declined to comment.
Clarification: This story has been updated to reflect that political strategist Trip Yang has donated to Grace Meng’s campaign.
