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NEW YORK, Aug. 23 (AP) A redrawn map of New York’s U.S. House of Representatives districts is threatening the political career of the first-term progressive and will ensure the removal of one of the most powerful Democrats in Congress.
The battle has led to a tight race among Democrats in the country’s second-largest blue state, with challengers and incumbents alike feeling a rare chance to win or lose power in Tuesday’s primary.
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There is also a degree of uncertainty about how New York’s congressional primary will swing due to expected low voter turnout. This is the second primary day in New York this summer, following the statewide and state legislature primary elections held two months ago. New York voters aren’t used to having primary elections late this summer — certainly not two ballots — and many find their long-standing precinct route has changed, adding to the confusion.
The primary for a Florida House seat will test a conservative demagogue, with the specter of a federal investigation hanging over him, and a repeat of the two Democrats after narrow losses last year.
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Some top elections:
end of an era
For three decades, Democrat Jerry Nadler has represented Manhattan’s Upper West Side and Democrat Caroline Maloney has represented the Upper East Side.
But under the new redistricting map, most of their longtime congressional districts are merged, spanning Central Park and linking two iconic New York City neighborhoods whose residents have vastly different identities.
Maloney, 76, and Nadler, 75, also each tried for honors in New York’s 12th district on Tuesday.
Nadler has the backing of Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who during his tenure as chairman of the House Judiciary Committee has spoken about his role in overseeing the impeachment of Donald Trump. Maloney boasted about his scrutiny of the former president as chairman of the powerful House Oversight Committee.
Challenging them both is lawyer Suraj Patel, 38, who thinks it’s time for a new face in Congress.
Crowded venue with open seating
Nadler and Maloney are campaigning in the immediate north of the region, with congressional seats covering southern Manhattan, including Wall Street and Brooklyn, a rare public race in one of the most liberal and influential districts in the country.
New York’s 10th District has attracted a group of progressive candidates, including incumbent congressman Mondaire Jones from suburban New York City, who moved to the area to run. Jones, one of the first openly gay black members of Congress, said it was important to have an LGBTQ representative in the area, which includes the West Village and the Stonewall Inn, the site of riots that sparked the gay rights movement.
One of his main challengers is former federal prosecutor Daniel Goldman, who served as a lawyer for House Democrats in the first impeachment inquiry into Trump.
Other candidates include Assemblyman Yuh-Line Niou, New York City Assemblyman Carlina Rivera and former Rep. Elizabeth Holtzman, who last served in Congress in 1981.
Fighting for House Democrats’ campaign chief
New York’s new 17th Ward, home to idyllic towns along the historic Hudson Valley, has turned into a heated debate for House Democratic campaign chairman Sean Patrick Maloney. Political struggle.
Maloney, a Democrat who became New York’s first openly gay congressman when he was elected a decade ago, is facing a primary challenge from state Sen. Alessandra Biaggi.
Biaggi, a 36-year-old progressive supported by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, is the granddaughter of former Bronx Congressman Mario Biaggi. She tried to paint Maloney as a disjointed person and part of the establishment.
Maloney, backed by former President Bill Clinton, has been campaigning for Democrats’ recent legislative victory in Congress and has warned that the seat could fall to Republicans in November if the Democratic nominee is too liberal.
Republicans vie to replace congressman after backlash
The Republican race in Western New York has become a tight race to replace Republican Rep. Chris Jacobs.
Jacobs decided not to seek re-election after facing backlash from his own party for expressing support for a ban on assault weapons following the racist mass shooting in his hometown of Buffalo in May.
Tuesday’s race in New York’s redrawn 23rd District was made up of New York Republican Chairman Nick Longworthy and Buffalo businessman Carl Paladino.
Palladino, who ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2010, has a long history of making inflammatory and offensive comments, including most recently praising Adolf Hitler, and spreading conspiracy theories around mass shootings.
special election
Not only are New Yorkers voting in Tuesday’s primary, but they are electing two new House members to fill the vacancies for the rest of the year.
One of the special elections will be a race in southern and central New York to replace Antonio Delgado, a Democrat who has become New York’s lieutenant governor. Republican Marc Molinaro and Democrat Pat Ryan are vying for the current seat in New York’s 19th Congressional District.
In Western New York, Democrat Max Della Pia and Republican Joe Sempolinski will campaign for the remainder of the current New York 23rd District. They are vying for the Republican-favored seat to replace Republican Rep. Tom Reid, who resigned in May after a year of sexual misconduct allegations.
Gates tested after scandal
The Florida primary will test whether Rep. Matt Gaetz is losing ground among moderate Republicans.
Gates has not been charged and has denied wrongdoing. He’s facing a challenge from former Marine Corps and FedEx executive Mark Lombardo, who is trying to take on him in Florida’s 1st congressional district when an investigation-focused attack ad covers the Western Panhandle.
Running in the Democratic primary in the Republican-dominated district is Rebekah Jones, a former Department of Health employee who has questioned the state’s COVID-19 data, despite the state inspector general’s report concluding her allegations There is no basis. She used the state’s support for fundraising to raise more than $500,000 and faced local Democratic activist Peggy Schiller, who raised about $34,000 for the campaign alone.
Fierce race for new MPs
Democratic Rep. Sheila Cheerfells-McCormick, who has only been in office since January, is facing a tough primary challenge from a rival she defeated by just five votes in the Florida special election.
Cherfilus-McCormick, representing parts of Broward and Palm Beach counties in the state’s 20th Congressional District, was challenged by former Broward County Mayor Dale Holness. Holness had just narrowly lost their special primary to serve the remaining months of the late U.S. Democratic Rep. Alsie Hastings’ term.
Since then, the rivalry between Cherfilus-McCormick and Holness has only intensified. Last month, Cherfilus-McCormick sued Holness, alleging defamation and seeking more than $1 million in damages. In a text message, an aide to Holness accused her of embezzling millions of dollars to help her buy a congressional seat, the lawsuit said.
Holness told NBC6 in South Florida that he hadn’t been consulted for text messages before his campaign sent them. But he said he still has questions about Cherfilus-McCormick’s campaign finances. Cherfilus-McCormick insists she spends her business money on her campaign.
The winner of Tuesday’s Democratic primary is expected to win in a Democratic-majority district in November.
A crowded pack of possible GOP pickups
Republicans have another chance in the seat held by Democrat Stephanie Murphy, who is not seeking re-election.
The new configuration of her Florida 7th district transformed it from a competitive to a comfortable Republican.
One of the most conservative members of the Florida legislature, state Rep. Anthony Sabatini, is part of an eight-candidate primary. Sabbatini is known for opposing his own party in the legislature because it was not conservative enough for him. He also called for defunding the FBI following the Mar-a-Lago raid and promoted false claims of voter fraud in the 2020 election. (Associated Press)
(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from the Syndicated News feed, the body of the content may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)
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