WASHINGTON — South Bronx Rep. Ritchie Torres may be inching toward a bid for statewide office after unveiling a vague new campaign social media account, top Empire State Democrats tell The Post.
Torres, 36, was elected to Congress in 2020 after seven years on New York’s City Council — and on Thursday launched a X page with the user name @RitchieTorresNY.
While Torres is immediately concerned with securing a third House term Nov. 5, insiders say the lack of explicit labeling could foreshadow a 2026 run for governor, lieutenant governor or even state attorney general.
“An unsaid fact in New York politics is that Ritchie Torres is very electable statewide, so a new campaign X account isn’t just fun — it’s fundamental to any bigger plans,” one well-connected New York Democrat unaffiliated with Torres told The Post.
“Ritchie Torres could, without a doubt, be elected statewide — and every statewide politician knows it.”
Torres, who is openly gay, has drawn significant national attention in the past year over his outspoken support of Israel.
He is also one of the few members of Congress to have grown up in low-income public housing.
The lawmaker served as Democrats’ point person in counter-messaging Donald Trump’s Thursday night appeal to black and Hispanic voters when the former president visited The Bronx for a large rally, appearing Friday morning on MSNBC.
But the X account’s vagueness has also turned heads for another reason.
“I’m Ritchie Torres, raised in Bronx public housing, and I became the first openly gay Afro-Latino elected to Congress. This is my official campaign account,” the congressman tweeted Thursday in one of four messages posted as of midday Friday.
“Everything is on the ballot. From our democracy to women’s and LGBTQ+ rights. Can you please retweet so others can join?” he wrote.
A second New York Democratic source told The Post that Torres would have a more difficult path to higher office if statewide incumbents such as Gov. Kathy Hochul and state AG Letitia James seek another term.
“Torres could be a strong candidate for statewide office if he can find issues to champion that resonate outside of the lower-income communities he represents,” the second source said.
“But his youth and lack of name recognition will be significant challenges to overcome if he is trying to take out seasoned incumbents.”
A third prominent New York Democrat, Robert Zimmerman, told The Post that “crises propel individuals into national leadership.”
“Ritchie Torres emerged as a national leader for LGBTQ rights, rights of economic justice, and certainly for Israel,” said Zimmerman, who is a member of the Democratic National Committee.
“Ritchie would be a strong leading candidate for any opening that took place in New York or nationally.”
Who exactly Torres might challenge is unclear more than two years out, and his office didn’t directly address speculation about his political future when contacted Friday by The Post.
“Like,” his communications director Benny Stanislawski responded, “and follow.”
