Democrat Tom Suozzi wins special election in New York to replace George Santos

Democrat Tom Suozzi won the electoral process for New York’s third congressional district, which had previously been occupied by Republican George Santos.

Suozzi ran for the seat against Republican Mazi Pilip.

DIVERSITY IN THE REPUBLICAN FIELD

House Republicans criticize diversity and inclusion programs within the federal government and elsewhere, but they see recruiting women and ethnic minority candidates, along with veterans, as key to expanding their slim majority in November.

Rep. Richard Hudson, chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, recently listed for reporters a series of candidates he described as fitting the “formula” for the GOP to expand its ranks in November.

It included Prasanth Reddy, an oncologist who emigrated to the United States from India and joined the military after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Running for congressional seat in northeast Kansas. Then there was Alison Esposito, a gay former police detective who ran for a seat in New York.

Another example Hudson cited was George Logan, whose parents came to the United States from Guatemala and ran for a seat in Connecticut. There is also Kevin Lincoln, an African-American and Hispanic mayor in Stockton, California, and Mayra Flores, who is running for another candidacy. She made history by becoming the first congresswoman born in Mexico, but subsequently lost in the 2022 midterm elections.

“These are not your run-of-the-mill generic Republicans,” Hudson said.

Republicans hope the gains made in the 2022 midterm elections will continue with their latest slate of candidates. House Democrats have a sizable lead when it comes to minority voters and have no intention of giving up any ground, and last month announced a $35 million investment focused on reaching voters of color through polling, organizing and advertising. The race to attract women and minority voters will undoubtedly be one of the factors that will determine which party controls the legislative body next year.

Hudson noted that in the last presidential election, prognosticators predicted that Republicans would lose seats.

“We beat 15 Democrats and every one of them we beat with a woman, a minority candidate or a veteran,” Hudson said. “That’s really been the playbook for the last two cycles. So we’re using the same formula.”

When asked what she thinks of the House Republican approach to recruiting women and minorities, the chairwoman of the House Democrats’ campaign arm was skeptical.

“I think they say a lot of things, but I think their actions are really what people should consider.”said Rep. Suzan DelBene, chairwoman of the House Democrats’ campaign arm. “And their actions have been the opposite: They mock diversity and equity, and propose policies that work against diverse communities across the county.”

DelBene is referring in part to the dozens of policy mandates that legislative Republicans have included in spending bills. Most of the bills sought to prohibit taxpayer money from going to offices and programs related to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), which focus on ensuring fair treatment and participation of all people, especially those who have been subject to discrimination.

It’s not just House Republicans who are seeking to end those programs. Republican lawmakers in at least 17 states have proposed about three dozen bills to restrict or require public disclosure of DEI initiatives, according to an analysis by The Associated Press using Plural, a bill-tracking software.

Hudson did not answer whether the focus on appealing to women and minorities as Republican House candidates clashes with efforts to clamp down on diversity and inclusion programs within the federal government and elsewhere. He described it as “apples and oranges” and said, “I just haven’t thought about it much.”

“The motivation is that we want our Congress to reflect America. And we believe that if we have dynamic candidates with compelling life stories, then they can win any district because they are not generic Republicans,” he added.

Hudson will see the first results of tests on the GOP’s strategy on Tuesday in a special election in New York to replace Republican Rep. George Santos, who was fired from office by his colleagues in December. Tom Suozzi is the Democratic candidate and seeks to return to the seat he held for three terms before running unsuccessfully for governor.

The Republican candidate is Mazi Pilip, an Ethiopian immigrant, former Israeli paratrooper and mother of seven children. Hudson said she is an example of the type of candidate who believes she can reach voters with a compelling life story.

“She’s a mom. She’s a soldier. She’s an immigrant. She’s the American dream,” Hudson said.

Hudson’s emphasis on diversity—the recruitment of minorities and women—makes political sense given the growing racial and ethnic diversity of American voters.

According to the Pew Research Center, a group of experts that provides information on attitudes, trends and issues in the United States and the world, the number of Hispanics eligible to vote has increased approximately 12% in the last four years. , and the number of Asian Americans eligible to vote has grown by about 15%. The number of black people with the right to vote has increased by 7%. That’s compared to an overall increase in eligible voters of 3%.

Another example of the Republican outreach to women is the E-PAC (Political Action Committee), whose slogan is “Elevate. Empower. Engage” of Representative Elise Stefanik, who was launched after the 2018 midterm elections to support and increase the number of women in Congress. The PAC’s website notes that in the 2020 election, 11 of the 15 districts that flipped Republican were won by women backed by E-PAC, and that it supported a record number of Hispanic women in the 2022 election. .

“They have their own DEI offices. They don’t like to call them that,” said Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., specifically citing the PAC. “But the Republican Party is full of their own DEI initiatives because they actually find that their performance, like that of many other organizations, can sometimes benefit from having diverse perspectives.”

Stefanik said she was proud to help expand the ranks of Republican women in the House of Representatives and “we are going to win with the strongest candidates.”

Steven Horsford, chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, said he was glad Republicans recognized the importance of recruiting women and people from ethnic minorities.

“They also need to recognize it in their agenda,” Horsford added. “They can’t say something unanimously and then act in a way that undermines the very things that help create an inclusive environment for everyone.”

Republicans have made progress in increasing their number of female and minority members, but they still lag behind Democrats on most fronts.

Republicans doubled their number of black members in the House of Representatives to four in the last election, while there are 55 black Democratic members. The Hispanic and Latino ranks in the House include 15 Republicans and 37 Democrats.

There are 126 members of the House of Representatives who are women, of which 92 are Democrats and 34 are Republicans. The statistics do not include delegates and Puerto Rico’s resident commissioner, who cannot vote on the final approval of the bills, but are members of Congress.