Democrat Pat Ryan beats Republican Marc Molinaro in special House race in bellwether New York district
Democrat Pat Ryan, a combat veteran and Ulster County executive, narrowly defeated Republican Marc Molinaro in a special election in New York's 19th Congressional District, The Associated Press and other news organizations projected late Tuesday. The seat was vacated when former Rep. Antonio Delgado (D) became New York's lieutenant governor, and Ryan will serve the final four months of Delgado's term while campaigning for a full term in the newly redrawn 18th District.
President Biden won the district by about 1.5 percentage points, but polls had shown Molinaro winning, especially before the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June. Ryan then made access to abortion a central focus of his campaign, turning the swing district into "a potential test of the impact that the recent Supreme Court decision on abortion might have on the midterm elections," The New York Times reports. Molinaro, who is running in the newly redrawn 19th District in November, campaigned on the economy, crime, and baby formula shortages.
Cook Political Report's Dave Wasserman called Ryan's win "a huge victory" for Democrats in a "bellwether" district Biden narrowly won, but he cautioned that Republicans are "still clear favorites" to win the House in November, thanks largely to the Democrats' "devastating string of legal defeats toward the end of redistricting" in New York, Florida, Ohio, and other states.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
New York Times analyst Nate Cohn said he wasn't surprised by Ryan's victory, "but the reason it's not a massive upset is because the signs of Democratic strength just aren't rare anymore," he tweeted. "Democrats have overtaken Republicans on the generic ballot. They've been outperforming in several straight congressional races."
The Republicans won the second New York special election on Tuesday, with local GOP leader Joe Sempolinski beating Democrat Max Della Pia in the conservative 23rd Congressional District. But the margin was narrower than expected. Sempolinski, a former aide to former Rep. Tom Reed (R) — who vacated the seat earlier this year to take a lobbying job — will not run for a full term in November. Della Pia is running in the newly drawn 23rd District. His opponent will be New York GOP chairman Nick Langworthy, who beat Carl Paladino in a contentious Republican primary Tuesday night.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Bolton indictment: Retribution or justice?Feature Trump’s former national security adviser turned critic, John Bolton, was indicted for mishandling classified information after publishing his ‘tell-all’ memoir
-
Chicago: Scenes from a city under siegeFeature Chicago is descending into chaos as masked federal agents target people in public spaces and threaten anyone who tries to document the arrests
-
Young Republicans: Does the GOP have a Nazi problem?Feature Leaked chats from members of the Young Republican National Federation reveal racist slurs and Nazi jokes
-
Trump vows new tariffs on Canada over Reagan adspeed read The ad that offended the president has Ronald Reagan explaining why import taxes hurt the economy
-
NY attorney general asks public for ICE raid footageSpeed Read Rep. Dan Goldman claims ICE wrongly detained four US citizens in the Canal Street raid and held them for a whole day without charges
-
Trump’s huge ballroom to replace razed East WingSpeed Read The White House’s east wing is being torn down amid ballroom construction
-
Trump expands boat strikes to Pacific, killing 5 moreSpeed Read The US military destroyed two more alleged drug smuggling boats in international waters
-
Trump demands millions from his administrationSpeed Read The president has requested $230 million in compensation from the Justice Department for previous federal investigations
-
Trump nominee in limbo after racist texts leakSpeed Read Paul Ingrassia lost Republican support following the exposure of past racist text messages
-
Trump begins East Wing demolition for ballroomspeed read The president’s new construction will cost $250 million
-
Appeals court clears Trump’s Portland troop deploymentSpeed Read A divided federal appeals court ruled that President Trump can send the National Guard to Portland
