Michelle Hinchey, 31-year-old daughter of the late congressman Maurice Hinchey, who died in November 2017 from complications of frontotemporal degeneration, announced last week that she will be running for New York state Senate. Her kick-off campaign speech was delivered in Kingston, NY, to a crowd of about 80 supporters. Hinchey is running for the 46th State Senate District.

Maurice Hinchey was considered a local political legend, serving nine terms in the state Assembly and 10 in the U.S. House of Representatives. Though Michelle set her own political ambitions aside while helping her family navigate her father’s illness, she has remained connected to local causes, and is now ready to enter the political arena. Hinchey shares her father’s fierce devotion to environmental concerns and the well-being of upstate communities, and recently expressed her desire to carry on his legacy:

“When [my father] passed I felt it was incredibly important for me to pick up his mantle and be a voice for working families and our communities.”

Michelle Hinchey also recognizes the importance of using her voice and influence to raise public awareness of FTD. In October 2017, shortly before her father’s death, Michelle appeared alongside AFTD’s Senior Director of Programs, Sharon Denny, on NY1 to shed light on FTD.