A New York judge has authorised new district borders, setting up at least two difficult Democratic primaries and putting long-serving party stalwarts against each other in a heavyweight contest.
The congressional map, prepared by a court-appointed expert, combines the districts of long-serving Democratic Reps. Jerrold Nadler of Manhattan’s Upper West Side and Carolyn Maloney of Manhattan’s Upper East Side.
It also set the stage for a showdown between Rep. Mondaire Jones, a homosexual Black rookie progressive, and former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio.
Maloney and Nadler were both elected in 1992 and have worked together for the past 30 years in their adjacent districts, rising through the ranks to become important committee chairs.
Nadler chairs the House Judiciary Committee and was a prominent figure in both of former President Donald Trump’s impeachment hearings, while Maloney chairs the House Oversight Committee, which has looked into misappropriation of government funding to battle the Covid epidemic.
However, both have announced their intention to compete for the newly created 12th Congressional District, setting up a fight in the Aug. 23 primary.
“I look forward to running in the new NY-12 — which includes my long-time residence and many communities I have represented throughout my entire career in public service,” Nadler said in a statement. “This new district belongs to no individual candidate, but instead to the voters who call it home.”
Maloney stated in her statement that she is “not afraid of a battle,” adding that the majority of the new district overlaps with the previous one.
“Regardless of who’s jumping into the race with our new maps, I know I’m the right leader for the people of New York’s 12th district,” she said. “Too often qualified and accomplished women have been told to stand aside for the sake of men’s egos. But I have a lifetime of experience standing up to powerful men.”
Member-on-member primaries, as they are known, occur occasionally after redistricting when the districts of two congressmen are united, but they are uncommon, particularly between two members of Congress with such seniority.
Meanwhile, de Blasio, who left office less than six months ago, said Friday that he will run for Congress in the newly constituted 10th Congressional District, which includes Lower Manhattan and parts of Brooklyn, including de Blasio’s Park Slope neighbourhood.
In a region that has been an epicentre of American liberalism, he is anticipated to fight a number of other candidates, including Jones, who announced his candidacy on Saturday.
Jones, who presently represents Westchester’s 17th Congressional District, was put in an exceptionally tough position by the new design.
