Democrats in the 8th congressional district can spare New York from becoming a national laughingstock.

They can do this by selecting Assemblyman Hakeem Jeffries in the June 26 primary as their candidate for the seat being vacated by the retiring Rep. Ed Towns.

We don’t often agree with Jeffries — but his opponent in this Brooklyn-Queens district is the odious City Councilman Charles Barron, a shameless racial demagogue.

On one level, it would be refreshing to have Barron sowing hatred elsewhere.

He is the fellow, after all, who once fantasized about slapping whites “for my mental health” — and who termed Israel “the biggest terrorist nation on Earth.”

But New York needs all the influence it can find in Congress, and sending Charles Barron to Washington can only hurt the city’s best interests.

Yet even if his rhetoric were more restrained, Barron would still be the wrong choice, given his role as a tool of the public-sector unions — who, to their disgrace, are now backing his candidacy.

That’s not surprising: Those unions have always operated by the rule that “all we care about is what benefits us, and the hell with everyone else.”

Again, Jeffries shares few of our opinions.

But he’s better suited for office by reason of his background — top-notch litigator with private-sector experience — and his temperament, which has brought about solid legislative achievements in Albany.

More important, he has shown an ability to move beyond liberal orthodoxy — particularly regarding education reform.

He’s a passionate and vocal advocate for school choice and lifting the cap on charters — which is why the public unions are dead set on defeating him.

As for Barron — well, Towns described it best back when Barron was running against him in 2006, calling him “a bomb-thrower.”

Unfortunately, Towns is backing Barron this time — a pretty sad legacy.

By every conceivable measure, Hakeem Jeffries is the far better choice. Indeed, he’s the only choice for voters who truly care about New York.