Right now voters across New York are deciding who will face off in the state’s congressional and state senate midterm elections. Melissa Russo reports.
New York is holding its second round of primary elections after voting in June for statewide races. Tuesday will cover the state’s 26 U.S. House seats, a delayed date after a judge ordered a redrawing of political maps.
The new congressional districts have caused Democratic consternation, especially a new Manhattan-area seat that has turned two incumbents into rivals. Rep. Carolyn Maloney, who has represented New York City’s Upper East Side for three decades, is facing Rep. Jerry Nadler, who has represented the Upper West Side for just as long.
"I’m the only woman from Manhattan in Congress. We don’t want to give that up," Maloney said Tuesday.
"I think from New Yorkers' point of view, it would be unfortunate to lose a member of Congress but to lose two — would be catastrophic," said Nadler. "With seniority you build up clout. That means more legislatively and more pork back to your district."
Maloney, 76, and Nadler, 75, each chair powerful committees. Running in the same primary is Suraj Patel, a 38-year-old attorney who says it’s time for a new generation of leaders.
"We have all the momentum and energy. We are the only campaign talking about the future," Patel said.
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Nadler has been endorsed by The New York Times and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. But turnout could be low since many district residents have left for summer vacations, especially wealthy voters who have second homes elsewhere, making predicting the winner difficult.
Unpredictable turnout could also decide a primary in an ultraliberal district in southern Manhattan and Brooklyn. Competing there is progressive Rep. Mondaire Jones, who represents a Hudson Valley seat but is running further south to avoid another incumbent-on-incumbent challenge.
Other candidates for the seat include Assembly member Yuh-Line Niou, New York City Councilwoman Carlina Rivera and former Rep. Elizabeth Holtzman. Also running is Daniel Goldman, the former federal prosecutor who served as counsel to House Democrats in Trump’s first impeachment inquiry.
As of 6pm on Tuesday, the NYC Board of Elections said that nearly 238,000 ballots had been cast, both on Primary Day and from early voted as well as mail-in ballots.
Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney, who heads the House Democratic campaign organization, is running in a new suburban district north of New York City. He swapped districts without consulting Jones, who currently represents most of the area. The move rankled the left and led state Sen. Alessandra Biaggi to challenge him for the seat.
A top Republican primary race is unfolding near Buffalo, where Republican Rep. Chris Jacobs opted not to seek reelection after facing backlash for voicing support for gun safety measures following a racist mass shooting in his district last May. New York Republican Party Chair Nick Langworthy and businessman Carl Paladino are running to replace him.
Paladino is a former gubernatorial candidate with a long history of offensive comments, including his suggestion that Adolf Hitler was “the kind of leader we need today” because of his ability to rally crowds. More recently, he said in a radio interview that U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland “should be executed” for authorizing a search of Trump’s home. He said later in the show that he was being facetious.
