ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — Republican Mike Lawler defeated Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney in New York City’s northern suburbs, and the GOP swept all four seats on Long Island, as the party closed in on its largest share of the state’s congressional delegation in two decades.
Lawler defeated the five-term New York Democrat who had led his party’s attempt to retain control of Congress.
Lawler, a state Assemblyman, ran a spirited campaign focused on inflation and public safety issues against the chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
Maloney’s loss in a congressional district in the Hudson River Valley, north of New York City, is both a symbolic victory for Republicans and a territorial setback for Democrats in the national fight for control of the U.S. House of Representatives.
On Long Island, Republican Anthony D’Esposito won in a congressional district that hasn’t sent a GOP candidate to Washington in 26 years.
D’Esposito, a retired New York Police Department detective and member of the Hempstead town council, defeated Democrat Laura Gillen in a district covering southern parts of Nassau County, just outside New York City.
He succeeds U.S. Rep. Kathleen Rice, a Democrat who did not run for reelection.
Republican Marc Molinaro won the race to represent a sprawling new congressional district that runs from the Massachusetts border, over the Catskill Mountains and all the way to Ithaca, the small city in the Finger Lakes region that is home to Cornell University.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.
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Five U.S. House races in New York remained undecided early Wednesday but Republicans were threatening to pick off more seats from Democrats and potentially grab their largest share of the state's congressional delegation in two decades.
The closely contested battles include a fight in the Hudson Valley between U.S. Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney and his Republican challenger Mike Lawler, a state assemblyman who held a narrow lead early Wednesday.
The Associated Press has not declared a winner in that contest, but Maloney, the chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said he conceded the race Wednesday morning in a phone call to Lawler.
“I don’t like to lose, but my opponent won this race and he won it fair and square," Maloney said at a news conference in Washington. "And that means something. So I’m going to step aside. And I had a good run.”
Not counting that contest, Republicans have won at least seven of the 26 seats New York will have in Congress next year, just one fewer than their current representation in what is now a 27-seat delegation. Republicans were leading or within a percentage point of the lead in five more races.
In the suburbs of Nassau County, just east of New York City, Republican Anthony D’Esposito, a member of Hempstead’s town council and a former New York Police Department detective, held a narrow lead over Democrat Laura Gillen.
Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro, a Republican, held a narrow lead over Democrat Josh Riley in a newly created district that runs from the Massachusetts border to the state’s Finger Lakes region in central New York.
In Syracuse and its suburbs, Republican Brandon Williams held a narrow lead over Democrat Francis Conole in the race to succeed U.S. Rep. John Katko, a Republican who is retiring.
In another Hudson Valley district, U.S. Rep. Pat Ryan, a Democrat, was clinging to a narrow lead over Republican Colin Schmitt, a second-term state Assemblyman.
The race appeared exceedingly close early Wednesday, but Schmitt nonetheless conceded, saying he hoped Ryan “will do great things for our Hudson Valley families.” The Associated Press has not declared a winner in the race.
Democrats held on to many of New York's top offices in Tuesday's election, winning the governor's race, the race for U.S. Senate and state attorney general.
Voter dissatisfaction imperiled the party, though, in the suburbs.
Democrats also appeared to be hurt badly by the collapse of their attempt to gerrymander the boundaries of New York's congressional districts in a way that could have given the party a huge advantage.
Courts threw out maps passed by the Legislature and signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul, citing procedural errors and excessive partisanship. A court appointee then drew new maps that prioritized competition.
The result has been more close matchups than the state has seen since the late 1990s, when Republicans represented 13 of what was then New York's 31 congressional districts.
The Associated Press
