Republicans’ already thin majority in the House got even thinner this week, when Democrats flipped the New York seat previously occupied by George Santos.
Democrat Tom Suozzi defeated Republican challenger Mazi Melesa Pilip for the 3rd Congressional District seat in New York, regaining back the seat he once occupied. The seat has been open since Santos was expelled from Congress last December.
Suozzi won the special election that was held this week, earning 53.9% of the vote compared to Polip’s 46.1%.
While the district has historically leaned Democrat, it had started to move further right ever since Suozzi was elected to the seat last, which happened in 2020.
Republicans were hoping that the issues of crime and immigration would help them overcome the fact that Suozzi was well-known in the district, but they fell just short.
Suozzi’s campaign focused on common-sense governance and compromise, and he actually attacked not just Republicans but Democrats as well who have contributed to the hyper-partisan nature of politics today.
During his victory speech Tuesday night, Suozzi said:
“It’s time to move beyond the petty, partisan bickering and the finger pointing. It’s time to focus on how to solve the problems.”
With Suozzi’s election, Republicans now only have a three-seat majority in the House.
Even still, it doesn’t tilt the power from conservatives to liberals, and the GOP had already gone the last two months without the support of a member from that district.
In addition, Suozzi is considered a centrist and sometimes even a conservative Democrat. While the GOP can’t definitely count on him to back them in all regards, they also don’t have to worry about an ultra-liberal progressive trying to cause issues, either.
The GOP is hoping that this isn’t a foreshadow of what’s to come in November’s elections, as six other seats in New York should be key in determining which party has control of Congress’ lower chamber starting next year.
Democrats spent a lot of money in New York to get Suozzi elected. In fact, they spent nearly twice as much as Republicans in the race — $14 million compared to $8 million.
While that may not seem like a large number for a normal race, it’s a huge total for a special election like this one was. It shows just how important Democrats believed the race to be not just to cut down on the GOP’s current majority in the House, but also as a way to prove to voters throughout New York to vote liberal in November.
Suozzi will now serve out the remainder of Santos’ term, which will only run through early next year. If he wants to remain in Congress beyond January 2025, he’ll have to run for reelection in November.
Right now, it’s unclear whether Pilip will end up being the GOP’s choice to challenge Suozzi for that seat in November.
Joe Cairo, the chair of the Nassau County Republican Party, only said that “we’ll have to wait and see” when asked that question.
