The big news on primary night in New York was the defeat of two New York City congressmen by left-wing challengers backed by the city’s democratic socialist mayor, Zohran Mamdani.
And a fellow democratic socialist won yet another House primary in the city on Tuesday, June 23, giving the young mayor a congressional trifecta as a sequel to his stunning rise to power with a populist movement last year. All three Mamdani-supported candidates who prevailed in safely Democratic districts are likely to take seats in Congress next January and expand its progressive ranks.
But it wasn’t a full sweep for the left in New York’s Democratic primaries. In the suburbs just north of the city, an Army veteran with a centrist message rolled to victory in a key congressional race, preaching the importance of winning over independent and Republican voters as she spoke to a jubilant crowd of supporters afterward.
And in the only statewide race on the ballot, New York’s longtime comptroller, Tom DiNapoli, fended off the first challenge he has faced in almost two decades, soundly defeating a pair of rivals with the state’s Democratic establishment squarely in his corner.
Here’s a rundown of key results from primaries in both parties across the state, from Long Island to Rochester.
Left wingers romp in three NYC Congress races …
One of the establishment figures to fall was Rep. Adriano Espaillat, the Dominican-born lawmaker who represents upper Manhattan and a piece of the Bronx and has held office for a decade. Espaillant is prominent as chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, but that title carried little clout as Darializa Avila Chevalier, a 31-year-old democratic socialist, sailed past him by more than three points.
Suffering a much deeper defeat was Rep. Dan Goldman, a second-term Democrat whose district takes in progressive turf in lower Manhattan and part of Brooklyn. Brad Lander, a former New York City comptroller who competed with Mamdani and later joined his camp in last year’s mayoral race, took on Goldman with Mamdani’s support and scored a lopsided victory of nearly 30 points.
The third winner on the left in House races was Claire Valdez, a 36-year-old state Assembly member and democratic socialist running in a district that straddles Brooklyn and Queens. Valdez delivered a 20-point drubbing to Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, who ran with the backing of Rep. Nydia Velazquez, the retiring incumbent they were running to succeed.
… while a centrist Dem wins in suburbs to take on Lawler
In one of the nation’s most closely watched House races, Army veteran Cait Conley scored a resounding win in a five-way Democratic primary to take on Rep. Mike Lawler, a second-term Republican representing part of the Hudson Valley.
Conley, a political newcomer who held national security posts in the Biden administration, was embraced by the centrist Majority Democrats and steered a different course than the trio that won in New York City.
“We have to win not just tonight but in November,” the 41-year combat veteran told cheering supporters after her victory. “And to win, we have to build the biggest coalition this district has ever seen. Yes, that means Democrats but it also means independents and Republicans — people who may not share our party, but share our values.”
Conley led her nearest rival by 17 points in New York’s 17th District, a politically mixed terrain more conducive to a moderate than the New York City turf where left-wing candidates did so well on June 23. She and Lawler will battle this fall in what is seen as one of the country’s most competitive districts and a crucial seat to help decide control of the House in the midterm elections.
Trump-backed candidates win 2 GOP House primaries
Republicans endorsed by President Donald Trump won a pair of House primaries in an upstate district and on Long Island, in the latest sign of Trump’s enduring appeal to Republicans despite his sinking approval ratings overall.
Running to succeed exiting GOP Rep. Elise Stefanik in a northeastern chunk of New York, Trump-endorsed Anthony Constantino trounced rival Robert Smullen by almost 20 points, despite the state Republican Party’s backing for Smullen and his endorsement by the Conservative Party.
Constantino had made a splash last year by mounting a giant “Vote for Trump” sign on his Amsterdam business that could be seen from the New York Thruway. He refused to take it down and won the admiration of Trump, who praised him as “tough” and “born to be a fighter.”
“I learned a lot,” Constantino said in a speech after beating his party’s preferred candidate. “I became a much better fighter, and that’s what we want going into this general election.”
In a downstate primary, Trump-endorsed Michael LiPetri Jr. buried GOP rival Gregory Hach, who proclaimed his own MAGA loyalties but to no avail in the race to take on Democratic Rep. Tom Suozzi in a mostly Long Island district that takes in a piece of Queens.
LiPetri’s White House blessing was sealed with a campaign rally that Vice President JD Vance held with him on Long Island on June 17, six days before the election. Hach boasted an endorsement the next day by Trump ally Rudy Giuliani, but it was no help. He lost by more than 60 points.
Morelle easily wins 3-way Dem primary in Rochester area
Rep. Joe Morelle, a Rochester native serving his fourth term in Congress, easily beat challengers Sherita Traywick and Robin Wilt in a Democratic primary in New York’s 25th District, taking in all of Monroe County and part of Ontario County. His nearest rival, Wilt, trailed by more than 30 points.
The neighboring, Republican-held district had a Democratic primary as well. Army veteran Alissa Ellman beat Diana Kastenbaum to take on GOP Rep. Claudia Tenney for the sprawling 24th District, which wraps around Morelle’s turf and borders Lake Ontario.
DiNapoli beats two foes in comptroller primary
Comptroller DiNapoli has been the state’s chief fiscal officer and overseer of its giant public pension fund since 2007, and had never been challenged from within his own party in that long tenure. But he had two this time and had faced a barrage of criticism since last year from Drew Warshaw, a fellow Democrat who waged an aggressive bid to unseat the entrenched incumbent.
The outcome was a rout. DiNapoli won more than 61% of the vote, with Warshaw taking 19% and challenger Raj Goyle winning 13% in unofficial tallies by the state Board of Elections.
Emily Barnes, Albany reporter for the USA TODAY Network, contributed to this report.
Chris McKenna covers government and politics for The Journal News and USA TODAY Network. Reach him at CMcKenna@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: NY primaries had wins for the left in NYC and Trump-backed candidates
Reporting by Chris McKenna, New York State Team / Rockland/Westchester Journal News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Chris McKenna, New York State Team | USA TODAY Network
