Micah Lasher, the likely successor to Representative Jerrold Nadler in Manhattan's 12th District, built an unusual foundation for politics: a childhood career as a magician. As a teenager, Micah Lasher performed on the "Today" show, "CBS This Morning," and David Letterman's show, and published "The Magic of Micah Lasher" in 1996.

Lasher downplayed his magic past during the campaign, but magicians note the craft teaches perception manipulation. Lasher himself says magic taught him to "begin with the proposition that any outcome is achievable" — a mindset he applies to policy goals like cutting unmet mental health needs in half or building 800,000 housing units.

He won one of the most expensive House primaries ever, defeating a Kennedy, a tech entrepreneur, and Kellyanne Conway's former husband. Campaigning as a policy wonk rather than a star, he appealed to the district's 700,000+ residents with detailed white papers.

Lasher's father, Howard Lasher (died 2022), nurtured his magic interest. Though Lasher hasn't shared this past with his own children, fearing it becomes a "novelty aspect," he still approaches governance with a magician's logic: "If you had a magic wand, what would you want to achieve?"