# Sam Hartstein | Best in Government Affairs NY 2026

> Sam Hartstein, Founder at Kol Yisroel, is a 2026 Best in Government Affairs New York honoree, recognized as Rising Stars of the Year.

Canonical: https://www.uslege.ai/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/2026/sam-hartstein

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[Best in Government Affairs](/best-in-government-affairs)› [New York](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york)› [2026](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york#honorees)› [Rising Stars of the Year](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/rising-stars)› **Sam Hartstein**

USLege · Best in Government Affairs · New York

New York · 2026 Honoree

![Sam Hartstein, Founder at Kol Yisroel — winner, Rising Stars of the Year, 2026 Best in Government Affairs New York](/assets/awards/ny-2026/sam-hartstein.jpg)

Category

[Rising Stars of the Year](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/rising-stars)

Organization

Kol Yisroel

Title

Founder

[View LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/samuel-hartstein-7626512a)

[05 · Rising Stars of the Year](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/rising-stars)

# Sam Hartstein

**Founder**, Kol Yisroel

> There is no one currently doing it like him.
> 
> one colleague

Sam Hartstein — known to nearly everyone in Albany as "Shmulie" — founded Kol Yisroel this past January, and in its first legislative session the organization did something few new advocacy groups manage in a decade: it got young people into the Capitol and got lawmakers to notice. Kol Yisroel organized eleven educational trips to Albany, brought several hundred students face-to-face with elected officials, and registered more than 250 new voters.

That grassroots energy translated directly into legislative movement. Kol Yisroel's advocacy helped drive the introduction of Assembly Bill A10548 and Senate Bill S10067, companion measures that would establish a buffer zone around houses of worship to protect congregants from intimidation and disruption. Sam and his student advocates met repeatedly with legislative offices this session, helping build bipartisan co-sponsorship in both chambers and pushing negotiators toward a larger protective zone than initially proposed.

Still building in year one, Sam and Kol Yisroel are already planning to double down next session — more schools, more students in Albany, more voters registered — on the theory that showing up is itself a civic education. As one colleague put it, "There is no one currently doing it like him."

Same category

## More _Rising Stars of the Year_ honorees.

 [![](/assets/awards/ny-2026/caiti-anderson.jpg) **Caiti Anderson**Harter Secrest & Emery LLP](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/2026/caiti-anderson)[![](/assets/awards/ny-2026/laura-manley-ladopoulos.jpg) **Laura Manley Ladopoulos**Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP ](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/2026/laura-manley-ladopoulos)[![](/assets/awards/ny-2026/jerry-hyppolite.jpg) **Jerry Hyppolite**Profile coming soon ](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/2026/jerry-hyppolite)[![](/assets/awards/ny-2026/hunter-petro.jpg) **Hunter Petro**Carlucci Consulting ](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/2026/hunter-petro)[![](/assets/awards/ny-2026/jasmine-wali.jpg) **Jasmine Wali**Elevating Action for Family Justice Fund](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/2026/jasmine-wali)

[All New York honorees](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york#honorees) [Rising Stars of the Year](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/rising-stars) [The September 16 ceremony](/best-in-government-affairs/new-york/ceremony)

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