The Midterms Minute is a look at the candidates and races in battleground districts that you need to know about, shout about and support to make the biggest impact possible in the election on November 6th.
We want to remind you that we’ve set up The Midterms Minute H.Q., where you can view every spotlight segment we produce, every battleground race in the country, all of the Justice Democrats, Brand New Congress and Our Revolution candidates running in November, volunteer resources, and more. We hope you’ll take a moment to visit best of the left dot com midterms and dive in.
Today, we’re going to talk about the battleground races in New York, which is one of five states that political wonks say will determine the majority in the House. Many of these districts are up state, an area that polling shows doesn’t seem to be responding to “blue wave” fever. Senator Gillibrand and Governor Andrew Cuomo are both all but locked in for her re-elections, so we’ll jump right into the House races.
HOUSE:
NY-11: In New York’s 11th district, which includes Staten Island, Democrat Max Rose is challenging Republican incumbent Daniel Donavan. Donovan actually voted against Trump’s healthcare and tax bills in 2017, but is a big Trump supporter and was endorsed by the president during the primary. Rose, a former nonprofit healthcare executive, is running on a ‘burn the house down’ campaign that calls out establishment Republicans and Democrats for failing the people, saying “they all gotta go.” This race is rated by the Cook Political Report as likely Republican. HELP FLIP NY-11!
NY-19: In New York’s 19th district, Democratic attorney Antonio Delgado is challenging Republican incumbent John Faso. Delgado’s campaign is focused on establishing a universal healthcare coverage through a public option, while Faso voted for the Trumpcare bill and didn’t bother to show up to the town halls his constituents demanded. Faso has also been called out for racial dog-whistling for using lyrics from Delgado’s old rap songs in attack ads to call him an outsider with different values. But Faso is now behind in the polls in a district where Trump surged and is being outraised by Delgado. This race is considered a toss up. HELP FLIP NY-19!
NY-22: In New York’s 22nd district, Democratic assemblyman Anthony Brindisi is challenging Republican incumbent Claudia Tenney, who has received at least $100,000 dollars from health insurance companies and falsely stated that “so many of these people that commit the mass murders end up being Democrats.” Although Trump surged here with a 16 point win, Brindisi significantly outraised Tenney in the first quarter and had a 4 point lead in the polls at the end of August. The race is currently rated as a toss up. HELP FLIP NY-22!
NY-27: New York’s 27th district was almost an open seat race after Trump-allied Republican incumbent Chris Collins announced he was suspending his campaign. Then, days later, he was arrested and indicted by the FBI for insider trading. This put the seat in play, but Republicans were having trouble finding a new candidate. However, a few weeks ago, Collins resurfaced saying he’s back in the race because “the stakes are too high to allow the radical left to take control of this seat in congress.” Democrat Nate McMurry is challenging Collins, but it is still an uphill climb in one of the reddest districts in the state and the Democrats haven’t officially promised funding support. The National Republican Congressional Committee chairman has said he won’t spend a dime in this race because he’s confident, despite the FBI indictment, Collins will win. The race is currently rated as leaning Republican. HELP FLIP NY-27!
IMPORTANT DATES: To vote in the Midterm Elections in New York, you must be registered, have your application postmarked, or have made an in-person request by October 12th. Absentee ballot options and deadlines are complex, so we recommend taking a thorough look at elections dot NY dot gov website for that information.
It’s never too early to check registration cut off dates and absentee ballot request and submission dates in your own state. We highly suggest reviewing your state’s important dates and voter ID laws at rock the vote dot org as soon as possible to ensure you will be able to vote in the general election.
So, if making the Blue Wave a reality in November is important to you, be sure to hit the share buttons to spread the word about supporting Democrats in battleground races across the country via social media so that others in your network can spread the word too.
THE MIDTERMS MINUTE
REGISTER TO VOTE: RocktheVote.org/register-to-vote/
CONFIRM VOTER REGISTRATION: RocktheVote.org/resources/am-i-registered-to-vote/
CHECK VOTING DATES & POLICIES: RocktheVote.org/voting-information/
VOTER ID INFO/HELP: VoteRiders & 866ourvote.org
Get Involved/Resources: THE MIDTERMS MINUTE H.Q.
NEW YORK BATTLEGROUNDS:
NY Important Dates: Register, have your application postmarked, or have made an in-person request by October 12th. Absentee ballot options and deadlines are complex, visit elections.ny.gov website for that information.
U.S. HOUSE
NY-11: Max Rose
Swing Left NY-11 | Red to Blue NY-11
NY-19: Antonio Delgado
Swing Left NY-19 | Red to Blue NY-19
NY-22: Anthony Brindisi
Swing Left NY-22 | Red to Blue NY-22
NY-27: Nate McMurry
Posted October 5th, 2018; Researched & Written by Best of the Left Communications Director, Amanda Hoffman
Hear the segment in the context of Best of the Left Edition #1216: Taking a closer look at Columbus Day
