The North Country needs a congressional representative who is visible and responsible to its constituents, not to the Washington machine. Claudia Tenney has been missing in action in NY24.
We are lucky to have two committed candidates willing to put democratic values ahead of blind loyalty. Those candidates will face off in a Democratic primary June 23. The winner of the primary will be on the main ballot in November, and will need to build a sufficiently broad coalition to overcome a gerrymandered incumbent.
We believe that there is a chance to beat Tenney despite the odds and that Alissa Ellman stands the best chance to challenge Claudia Tenney in the general election for these reasons:
- As a disabled veteran she will fight for congress to fulfill its oversight role in international relations and policies.
- Her years as a teacher in upstate New York give her firsthand knowledge of the challenges we face to ensure our children’s future and the future work force which will fuel our economy.
- Alissa isn’t just another politician. Her rural, working-class roots in central and western New York have earned her the endorsement of the Working Families Party – a party which stands for reducing economic inequality and addressing racial and environmental injustices – not priorities of our current congressional representative.
- The issues facing CD24 are diverse and complex: tourism suffering the effects of adverse international relations; farmers facing the impacts of tariffs and the uncertainty of being able to afford fertilizer for their crops; and the reductions of access to our most basic needs such as food and healthcare. These have all happened under Claudia Tenney’s watch. Knowing one person cannot be an expert is all things, Alissa is building a cadre of regional experts to help inform her policy decisions.
- And finally, Alissa recognizes that her candidacy cannot be successful without growing a network of like-minded public servants. She is working to recruit and support candidates for county and state races, bringing new people and ideas into the system. True leadership isn’t about putting yourself first,and Alissa is a role model for those who want to strengthen our democracy.
While we are supporting Alissa Ellman for these reasons, we can’t emphasize enough that the most important thing is to get out and VOTE. Democratic primaries typically only engage about 20% of registered Democrats. Let’s terrify Claudia Tenney with our turnout and show her – we are serious.