New York Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney, the chair of the Democrat Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), defeated his insurgent Democrat primary challenger, state Sen. Alessandra Biaggi, to advance to the general election in November.
Dave Wasserman of Cook Political Report called the race at 9:38 p.m. eastern, noting that New York’s Seventeenth Congressional District is considered “Lean Democrat,” which means it is potentially flippable for a Republican candidate:
I’ve seen enough: Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D) defeats state Sen. Alessandra Biaggi (D) in the #NY17 Dem primary. @CookPolitical November rating: Lean D.
— Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) August 24, 2022
Maloney is in charge of helping the party defy the historical midterm trends and maintain — or even expand — its majority in the House.
However, the DCCC chair in this election picked up more far-left challengers after Maloney decided to run in New York’s Seventeenth Congressional District — where his black colleague, Rep. Mondaire Jones (D-NY), currently serves.
By kicking out his Democrat colleague from his congressional seat, he ultimately sees a safer path for reelection after this year’s redistricting. However, New York’s Seventeenth Congressional District is only slightly better for him.
In her campaign to oust the DCCC chief, Biaggi picked up endorsements from Socialist “Squad” leader Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) after she initially called for the campaign chair to resign from his position if he was to go through with the swap.
In November, he will face Republican Mike Lawler, who won his primary in New York’s Seventeenth Congressional District.
National Republican Congressional Committee chairman Rep. Tom Emmer (R-MN) released a statement following the result of the primaries tonight.
“Congratulations to Mike Lawler on his primary victory. Sean Patrick Maloney has failed the Hudson Valley with his incompetence, self-serving politics, and far-left extremism,” Emmer stated. “Maloney will be out of a job this November when voters reject his progressive agenda that’s brought about historic inflation and a violent crime wave.”
Jacob Bliss is a reporter for Breitbart News. Write to him at jbliss@breitbart.com or follow him on Twitter @JacobMBliss.
