Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney routs progressive challenger in heated New York primary

ALBANY, N.Y. — Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney prevailed Tuesday in the primary for the newly drawn 17th congressional district in New York, despite a spirited challenge from the party’s progressive wing and disapproval from a host of his peers.

His victory over state Sen. Alessandra Biaggi in the Hudson Valley district, called less than an hour after polls closed, was a blow to the left, which has criticized Maloney’s actions as Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chair while the party prepares for a bitter fight for control of the House this fall.

His win is also a flex of strength for the establishment wing of the party that lined up to back him. He had a 67 percent to 33 percent lead with 87 percent of precincts reporting.

“Tonight, mainstream won,” he said in a victory speech from his Peekskill watch party. “Common sense won. Democrats want candidates who get results and bring home the win.”

Maloney will now face state Assemblymember Mike Lawler, who easily won the Republican primary, in a Democratic leaning district that is set to be a tight race this November.

Maloney’s local connections, name recognition and fundraising preserved his lead for much of the race, but his campaign was precarious from the outset amid the interparty tension.

After New York’s maps were thrown out by a judge and redrawn by an independent outsider, Maloney angered a good chunk of his peers by announcing he was running in the new district he lives in despite it heavily overlapping with the district won by party-backed Rep. Mondaire Jones in 2020.

That led Jones to run in New York City. It also prompted the challenge from Biaggi, who was previously focused on running in a Long Island-area district. She quickly drew the backing of the left’s superstar Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the Working Families Party and a slew of progressive organizations.

National complaints against Maloney were fueled, in part, by the DCCC's decision elevate far-right Republican candidates in primaries, a political strategy some saw as cynical and dangerous. But he nevertheless earned support from Speaker Nancy Pelosi, former President Bill Clinton and The New York Times editorial board. He used his resources to rally local connections and attack Biaggi as out of touch with the swing district that he’s represented a portion of during his long tenure.

Biaggi, who won her state Senate seat by topping longtime Bronx incumbent Jeff Klein in 2018, has never represented any portion of the district. Her grassroots campaign efforts were offset by criticism from her former staff that an oppressive management style runs contrary to the values she touts publicly.

More recently, she raised eyebrows by suggesting that elected officials “past childbearing age” can’t be trusted to fight hard for reproductive rights.

Maloney, in a statement Tuesday, thanked Biaggi for “running a good race.”

“This primary made us stronger and together we will keep fighting for a better future for our country, starting with holding this seat and holding the House,” he said. “Now is the time to come together and ensure the Hudson Valley resoundly rejects the radical, anti-choice, pro-gun policies of MAGA Republican Mike Lawler.”

Lawler, in a statement, painted Maloney as a wealthy member of the Washington establishment and tied him and his congressional colleagues to high inflation, crime and tax rates.

“I congratulate Congressman Maloney on his primary victory, but will work day and night to defeat him on Tuesday, November 8,” Lawler said in a statement. “My neighbors literally can’t afford another two years of him in Congress.”