NEW YORK — Tom Suozzi, a fast-talking, surefooted centrist Democrat, won the special congressional election Tuesday for former Rep. George Santos’ district, according to The Associated Press, prevailing in a race centered on immigration.
In overcoming the inexperienced Republican nominee, Mazi Melesa Pilip, Suozzi chips into the Republicans’ already fragile House majority. When he takes office in the coming days or weeks, Suozzi is expected to narrow the GOP’s majority in the chamber to two seats, further weakening the unwieldy and fractious ruling Republican caucus.
The victory by Suozzi figures to soothe some Democratic anxieties that New York’s migrant crisis is leaving the party vulnerable in the November elections. But it may not provide a comprehensive road map for Democratic House hopefuls elsewhere, or spell doom for other Republicans.
The election played out on a snowy day on Long Island, and some speculated that the sloppy weather might have offered Suozzi a last-minute boost by depressing turnout on Election Day, when many Republicans prefer to vote.
Though the patch of Long Island and eastern Queens where the campaign took place seems to be tilting to the right, Suozzi carried a lifelong local’s intimate understanding of the district and political polish that made for a sharp contrast to his opponent.
The 44-year-old Pilip, an Ethiopian-born political newcomer plucked out of the Nassau County Legislature, struggled to answer basic questions about her platform, offering evasive answers when pressed for positions on topics including abortion and gun safety.
At the race’s lone debate, a frazzled Pilip insisted that abortion is a “personal decision, a personal choice” and that “every woman should have that choice.” But when pressed by Suozzi, a defender of reproductive rights, Pilip lashed out angrily and ultimately conceded, “I am pro-life.”
On the fundraising circuit, Suozzi also…
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