Countering MAGA inroads in NY State has become a 'top priority' for Democrats: report

Because New York State has gone Democratic in every presidential election since 1992, it has a reputation for being reliably blue. Yet parts of Upstate New York lean conservative, and people who voted for Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-New York) more than once are quick to point out that New York City doesn't reflect the entire state.

In an article published by Politico on June 2, journalist David Freelander reports on inroads the MAGA movement has been making in New York State.

"No state, except perhaps for the now sunburn-red Florida, bucked the national mood in the midterms quite like New York," Freedlander observes. "And while the GOP always had strength in rural counties upstate, in 2022 the party's gains came largely from the New York City suburbs, especially on Long Island, once a Democratic stronghold that has turned so sharply right that some national Democratic strategists wonder if they should just write off the area entirely."

The reporter adds, "Chuck Schumer, the Senate majority leader who regularly gets upward of 70 percent of the vote statewide lost both Long Island counties by a combined 15 points, the first time he'd lost either since his first campaign in 1998. (New York Gov. Kathy) Hochul ended up winning reelection by a narrower margin than fellow Democratic governors of states that are usually tougher terrain for Democrats — places like Michigan, Maine and Colorado."

Freelander adds, "The Republican strength has even begun to seep into New York City, where the GOP flipped a handful of state legislative seats in outer Brooklyn and Queens."

In NYC, Democrats were out of the mayor's office for 20 years — first under Mayor Rudy Giuliani, then under Mayor Michael Bloomberg (who served either as a Republican or an independent during his years in Gracie Mansion).

But neither of them ran far-right mayoral campaigns. The Republican trend that Freedlander describes is decidedly MAGA.

"Figuring out what happened in New York has become one of the Democratic Party's top priorities as 2024 approaches," Freedlander reports.

"Democrats see the state as key to reclaiming their congressional majority, and as a way to figure out what the next stage of the Trumpist GOP entails. House Majority PAC, an outside group affiliated with House Minority Leader, and Brooklyn's own, Hakeem Jeffries is preparing to spend $45 million in the state next year."