Jerrold Nadler, 75, on Tuesday defeated Carolyn Maloney with 55.4% of the votes in the Democratic primary, to become the de facto next Congressman representing New York’s 12th district. Maloney won only 24.4%, with a third candidate, Suraj Patel, receiving 19.2% of the votes.
Nadler thanked Maloney, recalling they “spent much of our adult life working together to better New York and our nation.”
New York’s 12th congressional district was initially represented by Maloney, while Nadler represented the former 10th district. The redrawn District 12 includes the Upper Westside, which was part of Nadler’s District 10 since the 1990s. The 12th district also includes several neighborhoods in the East Side of Manhattan, the Greenpoint section of Brooklyn, and western Queens, as well as Roosevelt Island.
In New York’s 10th congressional district, a potential serious enemy of the US-Israel alliance, Yuh-Line Niou, was defeated by a small margin by Dan Goldman.
“Tonight, though, is not a victory for myself, or any one person,” Goldman, an heir of the Levi Strauss fortune, said. “It is a victory for all of us, all of us who will not let authoritarian forces undermine the foundation of our democracy and the rule of law.”
New York’s 10th congressional district includes the southern portion of Morningside Heights, the Upper West Side of Manhattan, the west side of Midtown Manhattan, the west side of Lower Manhattan––including Greenwich Village, Tribeca, and the Financial District––and Borough Park and parts of Bensonhurst.
The 10th district has the largest number (270,000) and the highest percentage of Jews (37.6%) of any congressional district in America.
Nadler was gracious in his victory over an old ally – both he and Maloney represent the sensible Democratic party in Congress. As Nadler put it: “Here’s the thing: I’m a New Yorker, just like Bella Abzug, Ted Weiss, and Bill Fitts Ryan. We New Yorkers just don’t know how to surrender.”
Nadler is a proven pro-Israel voice in Congress, although he sided with President Barack Obama in the struggle over the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran.
Dan Goldman supports Israel’s continued security and prosperity, “as well as a two-state solution that enables the peaceful coexistence of an independent Palestine and Israel.” As such, he “opposes the Israeli occupation of the West Bank.” On the other hand, he opposes the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement, describing it as a “thinly-veiled demonstration of antisemitism.”
His opponent, Yuh-Line Niou, would have been a terrible choice for Israel. She approves of including restrictions on US foreign aid to Israel that would prevent the use of tax dollars for harm or violations of human rights. During the campaign, it has been alleged that Niou supports the BDS Movement. Niou stated that she’s never personally boycotted Israel and believes it has the right to exist, but she opposes Anti-BDS laws on First Amendment grounds.
Pheew…
There was some more good news for non-crazy Democrats in Tuesday’s primaries. In the New York 17th Congressional District, Sean Patrick Maloney, chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, easily defeated his left-wing opponent Alessandra Biaggi 66.7% to 33.3%.
Biaggi is a rising star on the NY left, and the darling of the left-leaning media: In 2019, Crain’s New York Business named her to its annual “40 Under 40” list. In June 2021, she was named to the Hunter College New York City Food Policy Center’s annual 40 Under 40: The Rising Stars in NYC Food Policy. In November 2021, Biaggi was named to the City & State New York “Women 100” as one of the prominent women wielding power in New York State. She was noted for pushing legislation against sexual assault and sexual abuse.
In New York’s 23rd Congressional District, in the Republican primary, Carl Paladino, who was described by the NY Times as having “a history of racist, sexist and homophobic remarks,” was defeated by Nick Langworthy, 52.1% to 47.9%.
New York’s 23rd is a Republican district in upstate, just south of Buffalo. The district comprises nine counties in full: Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Chemung, Schuyler, Seneca, Steuben, Tompkins, and Yates Counties, along with parts of Ontario and Tioga Counties.
