# Sarahana Shrestha
Sarahana Shrestha is an American politician and a Democratic member of the [New York State Assembly](https://www.edgepedia.org/new-york-state-assembly) from the 103rd district.[1](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha) Born and raised in [Kathmandu](https://www.edgepedia.org/kathmandu), Nepal, she moved to the United States in 2001 as a student and became a naturalized American citizen at the Ulster County Courthouse in 2019.[1](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha) She is the first New York State legislator of Nepali origin.[1](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha)
| Fact | Detail |
| --- | --- |
| Party | Democratic[1](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha) |
| Current office | Member, New York State Assembly, District 103[1](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha) |
| Born | Kathmandu, Nepal[1](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha) |
## Party affiliation
Shrestha is a Democrat.[1](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha) In 2022 she ran for the Assembly on the [Working Families Party](https://www.edgepedia.org/working-families-party) line.[2](https://myreptracker.com/new-york/elections/2026/state/house/103)
## Early life and education
Shrestha was born and raised in Kathmandu, Nepal, and moved to the United States in 2001 as a student.[1](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha) She became a naturalized American citizen at the Ulster County Courthouse in 2019.[1](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha) Her office biography states that growing up in Nepal she lived through an uprising for democracy against a monarchy and a decade-long civil war, and that her view of justice and democracy was shaped by witnessing wealth inequality and the intersection of ethnicity, caste, gender, religion, and class.[1](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha) In the [Hudson Valley](https://www.edgepedia.org/hudson-valley) she worked as a climate organizer, joining campaigns to stop fossil fuel plants and to bring what her biography calls energy democracy to New York State.[1](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha) She lives in the Town of Esopus with her husband, their dog, and several chickens.[1](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha)
## Career
Shrestha is a member of the New York State Assembly representing District 103, which covers part of Ulster County in the Hudson Valley.[1](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha) • [2](https://myreptracker.com/new-york/elections/2026/state/house/103) Her office biography says she decided to run for office because, in her words, "this moment of crisis demands bold action on everything that constitutes our safety net: climate, housing, healthcare, public education, jobs, worker rights, childcare, and more."[1](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha) As a legislator she has worked on utility affordability, housing, climate, and data center regulation, and with Senator Michelle Hinchey she secured $8 million for what their offices described as the first green social housing project capped at 25% of income.[3](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha/press/)
## Electoral history
In the 2022 election for Assembly District 103, Shrestha, running on the Democratic and Working Families lines, won with 36,605 votes, 60.8%, against Patrick Sheehan, running on the Republican and Conservative lines, who received 23,554 votes, 39.2%.[2](https://myreptracker.com/new-york/elections/2026/state/house/103)
## Issues specific to Shrestha
Shrestha has been a critic of the state budget process and of Governor Kathy Hochul. In 2026, the Daily Freeman reported that she joined Republicans in opposing the revenue bill for the $288 billion 2027 state budget, which was favored by the Democratically controlled legislature.[4](https://www.dailyfreeman.com/2026/05/28/shrestha-bucks-democrats-votes-against-2027-state-budget-plan-for-its-failure-to-tax-the-rich/) She said on social media that she opposed the revenue bill "for its failure to tax the rich and serve as a counterweight to the Trump administration."[4](https://www.dailyfreeman.com/2026/05/28/shrestha-bucks-democrats-votes-against-2027-state-budget-plan-for-its-failure-to-tax-the-rich/) In a speech before the vote she said, "The number of millionaires in the state continue to grow," and argued that households making $75,000 or less made up the largest group of people leaving the state because they could no longer afford to live there.[4](https://www.dailyfreeman.com/2026/05/28/shrestha-bucks-democrats-votes-against-2027-state-budget-plan-for-its-failure-to-tax-the-rich/)
On foreign policy, Shrestha's office issued a statement condemning what it called Israel's repeated violations of international laws and calling for the safety of activists aboard the Global Sumud Flotilla bound for the [Gaza Strip](https://www.edgepedia.org/gaza-strip), including two Kingston residents. She said, "I am heartened to hear that all Americans onboard the Global Sumud Flotilla, including two Kingston residents and a NYC-based former crewmember of The Clearwater, have now been released."[3](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha/press/)
## Positions and legislative record
### Climate and renewable energy
Her office biography describes her as a climate organizer who joined campaigns to stop fossil fuel plants.[1](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha) Governor Hochul signed into law a bill introduced by Shrestha, the Public Renewables Transparency Act (A07686A), which adds transparency measures to the [New York Power Authority](https://www.edgepedia.org/new-york-power-authority)'s buildout of publicly owned renewable energy and passed the State Assembly unanimously.[3](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha/press/) She has also said Governor Hochul must not abandon energy affordability and climate goals, and she called a NYSERDA memo on the costs of the state's climate law false and misleading.[3](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha/press/)
### Housing and tenants
Shrestha has hosted tenant meetings on rent stabilization and tenant organizing in Kingston, and commented on landlord lawsuits challenging the city's rent stabilization law, saying, "It's barely a surprise that landlords are once again suing the city of Kingston for wanting to protect its residents from exorbitant rent increases."[3](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha/press/) She has said Kingston's vacancy study shows the rent stabilization opt-in process is broken and that her REST (Rent Emergency Stabilization for Tenants) Act is needed to fix it.[3](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha/press/)
### Taxes and social spending
Shrestha's office conducted a snap survey on Ulster County's Fair Taxes proposal, with 82% of 466 respondents saying they preferred enactment.[1](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha) She has called on Governor Hochul to advance $640 million to keep SNAP uninterrupted during the federal shutdown, saying mutual aid efforts would not make a dent in the impact of the cuts.[3](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha/press/)
## References
1. [Sarahana Shrestha - Assembly District 103](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha)
2. [District 103, 2022 result](https://myreptracker.com/new-york/elections/2026/state/house/103)
3. [Sarahana Shrestha press releases](https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Sarahana-Shrestha/press/)
4. [Shrestha bucks Democrats, votes against 2027 state budget plan 'for its failure to tax the rich' – Daily Freeman](https://www.dailyfreeman.com/2026/05/28/shrestha-bucks-democrats-votes-against-2027-state-budget-plan-for-its-failure-to-tax-the-rich/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Society and history › Politics and government › Government and public administration › Politicians and government officeholders (biographies) › US governors and state officials › State legislators › Northeastern state legislators › Surnames N to Sl*
*Initially written Sep 27, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 28, 2026; Sep 29, 2026 · Edited: Sep 28, 2026 · Last review: Sep 29, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license