Democrat Tom Suozzi flips Long Island seat held by George Santos
Democrat Tom Suozzi won a special election for a U.S. House seat in New York on Feb. 13, coming out on top in a politically mixed suburban district in a victory that could lift his party鈥檚 hopes heading into a fiercely contested presidential election later this year.
Mr. Suozzi defeated Republican Mazi Pilip to take the seat that was left vacant when George Santos, also a Republican, was聽expelled from Congress. The victory marks a return to Washington for Mr. Suozzi, who represented the district for three terms before giving it up to run, unsuccessfully, for governor.
Mr. Suozzi鈥檚 win will likely reassure Democrats that they can perform well in聽suburban communities across the nation, which will be critical to the party鈥檚 efforts to retake control of the U.S. House and reelect President Joe Biden.
Still, forecasting for November could be complicated given that turnout, already expected to be low given the abbreviated race, was potentially hampered by聽a storm聽that dumped several inches of snow on the district on election day. Both campaigns offered voters free rides to the polls as plows cleared wet slush from the roads.
In the short term, the result could be a factor in聽ultratight votes聽in the House, where Republicans hold just a 219-212 majority. In an example of how important one seat can be, House Republicans聽voted the night of Feb. 13 to impeach聽Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas by a single vote, punishing Mr. Biden鈥檚 administration over its border policies.
At a polling place on Long Island earlier in the day, Eliezer Sarrias said he cast a ballot for Mr. Suozzi because the former congressman appeared more able to work with the opposing party to reach agreements and end congressional gridlock.
鈥淭he constituents elect our officials to perform a certain job, and we鈥檝e really had a very stagnant congressional year,鈥� Mr. Sarrias said after voting at a middle school in Levittown. 鈥淓ven with the migrants now, we had bipartisan deal in Congress and suddenly it evaporated, like, why? Do we really need to wait for another president to come, or aren鈥檛 the issues that are pressing to everyone important at the moment?鈥�
On the campaign trail, Mr. Suozzi, a political centrist, leaned into some of the same issues that Republicans have used to bash Democrats, calling for tougher U.S. border policies and a rollback of New York laws that made it tougher for judges to detain criminal suspects awaiting trial.
The unusual midwinter election became necessary after Mr. Santos was ousted by his colleagues in December, partway through his first term.
Mr. Santos won office in what had been a reliably Democratic district partly by falsely portraying himself as an American success story 鈥� a son of working-class immigrants who made himself into a wealthy Wall Street dealmaker. But many elements of Mr. Santos鈥� life story were later exposed as fabrications, and he was indicted on multiple charges including allegations he stole money from Republican donors. He has pleaded not guilty.
With no time for a primary before the special election, Democrats nominated Mr. Suozzi, a political centrist well known to voters in the district.
Republican leaders turned to Ms. Pilip, a relatively unknown candidate with a unique personal backstory. Born in Ethiopia, she migrated to Israel as part of Operation Solomon, and served in Israel鈥檚 defense forces before eventually moving to the United States and winning a seat in Nassau County鈥檚 legislature in 2021.
Ms. Pilip conceded the race and said she congratulated Mr. Suozzi in a phone call the night of Feb. 13.
鈥淵es we lost, but it doesn鈥檛 mean we are going to end here,鈥� Ms. Pilip told supporters at her election watch party.
Mr. Biden鈥檚 campaign manager was quick to link the victory to the upcoming presidential race: 鈥淒onald Trump lost again tonight. When Republicans run on Trump鈥檚 extreme agenda 鈥� even in a Republican-held seat 鈥� voters reject them,鈥� Julie Chavez Rodriguez said.
Mr. Trump responded to the result in a post on his social media site Truth Social, calling Ms. Pilip a 鈥渧ery foolish woman鈥� who was 鈥渞unning in a race where she didn鈥檛 endorse me and tried to 鈥榮traddle the fence,鈥� when she would have easily WON if she understood anything about MODERN DAY politics in America.鈥�
The short campaign was dominated by issues 鈥撀燼bortion, immigration, and crime 鈥撀爐hat are expected to shape crucial suburban races nationwide in this year鈥檚 battle for control of Congress.
Despite being an international migrant once herself, Ms. Pilip hammered Mr. Suozzi over an influx of asylum-seekers into New York City, accusing Democrats and Biden of failing to secure the U.S. southern border.
In response, Mr. Suozzi spent much of the campaign talking about the need to strengthen border policy, pointing out times when he bucked his own party on the issue while in Congress. In the final stretch, Mr. Suozzi said he would support a聽temporary closure聽of the border to slow the number of arrivals, similar to comments that Mr. Biden has made.
Mr. Suozzi counterattacked Ms. Pilip on abortion, saying she couldn鈥檛 be trusted to protect abortion rights in places like New York where it remains legal.
Ms. Pilip said she is personally against abortion but wouldn鈥檛 force her beliefs on others and would oppose any attempt by Congress to impose a nationwide ban. She has also said mifepristone, an abortion medication, should be available nationally.
Both candidates expressed unwavering support for Israel in its conflict with Hamas, even appearing side-by-side in an unusual joint event intended to convey solidarity.
Democrats and Republicans will get a chance to fight over the congressional seat again in November鈥檚 general election, though the battleground may look different.
That鈥檚 because the state鈥檚 congressional districts are set to be redrawn again in the next few months because of a court order. Democrats, who dominate state government, are widely expected to try to craft more favorable lines for their candidates.
New York is expected to play an outsize role in determining control of Congress this year, with competitive races in multiple contests in the suburban and exurban rings around New York City.
This story was reported by The Associated Press.聽AP reporter Philip Marcelo in Levittown contributed.
