The Democrats vying to challenge Rep. Mike Lawler

Republican Rep. Mike Lawler is well aware that he has a fight on his hands to stay in office as Democrats in New York and around the country have placed a bull’s-eye on the 17th Congressional District. There’s more than a year to go before voters decide if he’ll get a third term, but Democratic candidates are already staking their claim as the best option to challenge him in a general election. At the time of writing, eight candidates have already announced that they plan to run for the seat – and that number could grow.

The 17th Congressional District includes Rockland, Putnam and parts of Westchester and Dutchess counties. Despite Lawler’s success, Democrats actually have a voter registration advantage in the district, and the district backed Joe Biden in 2020 and Kamala Harris in 2024. The district includes many towns that serve as bedroom communities for those who work in New York City, as well as a large concentration of Orthodox Jewish communities. The high cost of living that many district residents face has raised the political significance of the state and local tax deduction cap, which Lawler successfully fought to raise.

The last Democrat to represent the district was former Rep. Mondaire Jones, but due to redistricting, Lawler defeated former Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chair Sean Patrick Maloney in 2022 after Maloney had moved over to this race after representing the 18th District. Jones tried to run in the 10th District in New York City in 2022 but lost in the primary before losing in this district last year to Lawler. It had been reported in July that Maloney was considering another run for this seat, but Westchester County Democratic Party Chair Suzanne Berger shot down those rumors.

When Lawler won reelection comfortably last year, it was something of an outlier, as Democrats flipped three House seats in New York that cycle. Affordability concerns that helped get President Donald Trump elected seemingly did the same for Lawler. He also maintained his strong support in the Jewish community amid their concerns about rising antisemitism.

Things have been complicated by federal policies, some of which Lawler voted for, that are projected to curtail access to health care and social services for his constituents. Democrats are planning to pin the negative effects of these decisions on Lawler and have been ramping up pressure, with some of Lawler’s town halls devolving into hecklefests.

Each candidate is now in the process of convincing voters and party insiders that they are the ideal choice to capitalize on the discontent with Lawler and turn the district blue. But first, they’ll have to defeat the rest of what Lawler calls a “clown car” of rival candidates.

Beth Davidson

Rockland County Legislator Beth Davidson announced her run for Congress in February and currently leads the pack in fundraising. She also counts former Jones as a supporter. As a Jewish woman, part of her pitch is the possibility of making inroads with a community that has been a strength of Lawler’s throughout his career. She has also argued that by winning a seat in the county legislature that voted for Trump, she can run and win in a district that has been a sore spot for Democrats in the state.

Cait Conley

Cait Conley is an Army veteran and former election security official living in Ossining. Although she is a newcomer to politics, she does have experience working in Washington, D.C. She served on the National Security Council in the Biden administration and most recently worked at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency before leaving the federal government in January. Along the way, she was banned from Russia. She has incorporated those previous roles into her campaign by saying she’s the candidate who can hit the ground running in Washington should she defeat Lawler. Her platform is primarily focused on affordability and investments in the Hudson Valley’s infrastructure.

Jessica Reinmann

Chappaqua resident Jessica Reinmann leads the anti-poverty nonprofit 914Cares and was the first candidate to jump into the race. She has taken a strong position defending Israel’s actions in Gaza and criticizing U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s policies. Her fundraising has lagged somewhat compared to other candidates, but she has received endorsements from past and current local officials like North Castle Supervisor Joe Rende, Croton-on-Hudson Village Board Trustee Nora Nicholson and former Rockland County Legislator Nancy Low-Hogan.

Effie Phillips-Staley

Tarrytown Village Trustee Effie Phillips-Staley, who identifies as a progressive, launched her campaign in May. She previously worked with nonprofit and arts organizations in the district and in New York City. Her priorities include issues like child care, housing and health care.

Mike Sacks

Mike Sacks is a former broadcast journalist and attorney living in Croton-on-Hudson, and he made headlines when he announced his campaign in April by claiming he would “unfuck our country.” Outside of the chaos he feels Republicans are wreaking in Washington, D.C., Sacks has cited rising antisemitism as one of his main drivers for running, although he says that Republicans have weaponized it. He has been endorsed by the Blue America PAC.

John Sullivan

John Sullivan is a former FBI intelligence analyst and section chief living in Piermont after stints in Washington, D.C., Tel Aviv and the New York City metropolitan area during his 20-year career. He faced allegations of carpetbagging when he announced in April, as he had only recently moved to the district. Sullivan has argued that the Trump administration has weakened national security by replacing experts with political allies, and he believes he could help reverse that trend.

Peter Chatzky

Before announcing his campaign in June, Briarcliff Manor Deputy Mayor Peter Chatzky had spent more than a decade in local politics – including a stint as mayor – and founded a tech company. He has taken a comparatively critical stance on Israel compared to the rest of the field, arguing that its actions constitute a violation of U.S. arms sales laws. He also supports a universal health care system in New York, partly due to the high number of uninsured residents in the district.

John Cappello

Air Force veteran John Cappello is the latest candidate to enter the race. He only returned to Rockland County recently and was registered as a Republican before he switched his party registration to the Democratic Party in August.