WSKG reporters are interviewing candidates in some of the biggest races in our area heading into the November election. This week, we profile the candidates running for New York’s 19th Congressional District. The district stretches from Tompkins County to the Hudson Valley, and includes the cities of Binghamton, Oneonta, and Ithaca.
New York’s 19th Congressional District is one of the most expensive and competitive races in the country. The Republican incumbent, Rep. Marc Molinaro, is seeking a second term. His Democratic challenger is Josh Riley. The two faced off for the congressional seat back in 2022, and it was close. Molinaro won by less than 2 percentage points.
In an interview with WSKG, Molinaro reflected on his two years in Congress, and what he’s hoping to accomplish if reelected. We heard from Riley on Thursday.
Rep. Marc Molinaro started his political career when he was 18 years old. He was inspired to go into politics when he volunteered for Democratic Assemblywoman Eileen Hickey. After that, he said people in his hometown, the village of Tivoli in Dutchess County, convinced him to run for a seat on the village board of trustees.
“Businesses had left the community. The families were moving out. It's a story that we continue to face today,” Molinaro said. “And it was the community that said, ‘You know a lot about the way government's supposed to work.’ They were encouraged by me being involved as a volunteer, and truly as an 18-year-old, I was asked mostly by the old timers, senior citizens and even college students in the community to just get involved.”
Molinaro was elected mayor of Tivoli the next year. At the time, that made him the youngest mayor in the country. He was reelected five times, and would go on to serve for 12 years. He said being in local government helped him learn to work across the political aisle and listen to constituents.
“You're on the front line all the time, and you learn that when the roof leaks, it leaks on Republicans and Democrats and our job is to fix the roof, but also that the decisions you make have impacts on people,” Molinaro said. “And I carry that with me today. I learned everything from how to manage a water and sewer system and fix roads and fill potholes to economic development and land use and zoning.”
Molinaro’s decades-long political career includes two terms in the New York State Assembly, over a decade as county executive of Dutchess County, and even a bid for governor as the Republican nominee against then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo in 2018.
He said all that political experience taught him the value of bipartisanship. As a Republican working for decades in a mostly Democratic state, he presents himself as an elected official who can work with anybody to get things done.
Molinaro was the first Republican congressman to sign on to a bill that would protect access to in vitro fertilization. Though he does not believe Congress should codify abortion access on a federal level, Molinaro said he does not support a national ban on abortion.
“I believe that the choice a woman must make should be respected and should be between their physician and themselves, not Washington, D.C.,” Molinaro said. “I oppose a national abortion ban, and have not only kept my promise now, but will continue to do so. I also do not believe that we should embrace any national policy that diminishes access and the laws of the state of New York.”
Molinaro claimed New York’s more progressive abortion access laws could be infringed upon if federal codification were passed.
National politics are always an undercurrent in congressional races. But the outcome of this race could determine whether House Republicans hold on to their majority. A combined $35.5 million has poured into ads and digital spots for both candidates so far.
There is also a presidential race on the ballot this November. Molinaro supports former President Donald Trump, though he has said he did not vote for Trump in 2016. And like many Republican candidates this year, he has attacked President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris on border security.
“I believe, at the end of the day, that security at the border, an enhanced and efficient asylum adjudication process at the border, ending drug and human trafficking at the border is in the best interest of those wanting to come into this country legally, and Americans and New Yorkers who want their community safe and they want their jobs. And what we have now is a total catastrophe,” Molinaro said.
Molinaro said the federal government should invest in an increase in agents at the Southern border, a physical barrier, and a streamlining of the asylum adjudication process.
He also supports “Remain in Mexico”, a Trump-era policy which required asylum seekers to stay in Mexico while waiting for their immigration court date in the U.S. The policy was criticized by human rights organizations and ended by the Biden administration.
Molinaro said if reelected, he would also focus on addressing the overdose epidemic and public safety concerns. His campaign has highlighted his work on the issue of disability justice.
Molinaro has been behind on fundraising compared to his Democratic opponent, Josh Riley. According to the Federal Election Commission, Riley’s campaign has raised a total of over $7 million in contributions, compared to Molinaro’s nearly $5 million.
But Riley also outraised Molinaro back in 2022, when he lost. Molinaro said now, as an incumbent, he has even more experience to draw on and present to voters. He said he frequently travels the 11 counties of the 19th District to hear from voters.
“What's changed is, I know, as a member of Congress now, how to leverage the outcome on behalf of the people I serve,” Molinaro said. “I know families and farmers and small businesses, how passionate they are about their communities, and I give voice to them. What's changed is that when they need somebody to help, we don't ask what party you're from. We don't ask who you voted for.”
This race is also taking place within newly redrawn district lines. Some political experts have suggested the new map could skew slightly in Molinaro’s favor.
Polling from the news outlet WNYT in Albany released this month has Riley ahead of Molinaro by 4 points.
Early voting starts this Saturday. Election Day is Tuesday, November 5.
