WASHINGTON –Rep. Claudia Tenney, a Utica-area Republican whose district was divided up in a redistricting plan released by Democrats on Sunday, said Monday that she plans to run for re-election in the newly redrawn district that stretches from southern Erie County nearly to Binghamton.
"I have a strong conservative record of advocating for our upstate values, fighting for our small business community including our local farmers, defending election integrity, fighting for our Second Amendment Rights, supporting the natural gas industry, and holding the Biden Administration accountable," said Tenney, 60, of New Hartford, in Oneida County. "I look forward to meeting and earning the support of even more New Yorkers and getting to work for our region in Congress."
Tenney, an attorney and small business owner, won the congressional election in New York's current 22nd District in 2016, only to lose it two years later. But in 2020, she reclaimed the seat in a narrow victory over Democratic Rep. Anthony Brindisi.
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The current district Tenney serves stretches from Oswego in the north through Binghamton and to the Pennsylvania line.
The new 23rd District, in contrast, is a horizontal Southern Tier district similar to, but larger than, the current 23rd District served by Rep. Tom Reed, a Corning Republican who is retiring from Congress. The new district includes Hamburg, Orchard Park and the rest of the Erie County Southtowns.
And while it might seem surprising for a Utica-area representative to want to serve the Southern Tier and the Buffalo suburbs, Tenney noted in a news release that she has ties to the eastern end of the new district.
"My family business has been owned and operated in Chenango County since 1946, creating jobs for hundreds of people in our community over the years and contributing to our Southern Tier economy," Tenney said.
Tenney is the co-owner of Mid-York Press, a commercial printing and manufacturing firm that employs about 80 people in Sherburne, in Chenango County. Sherburne is in the proposed 19th District, a heavily Democratic enclave that stretches from Binghamton eastward all the way to the state line.
That's an expanded version of the current district now served by Rep. Antonio Delgado, a Hudson Valley Democrat.
Democratic mapmakers essentially split up Tenney's old district, leaving her with the possibility of opposing Delgado or running for a heavily Democratic open seat that includes Syracuse and Ithaca.
Instead, Tenney enters the 23rd District race with one huge advantage: money. She enters the race with $1.15 million in her campaign account, her campaign said Monday.
It's unclear whether Tenney's entrance into the race might deter other hopefuls in the heavily Republican Southern Tier district. Joe Sempolinski, a former Reed aide, has already announced his candidacy and has Reed's endorsement. And former State Sen. Cathy Young of Olean is believed to be eyeing the race.
Cattaraugus County Republican Chairman Robert Keis said he has talked with Young “and there is definitely interest there.”
“She has my full support,” he said. “Cathy checks all the boxes. I have not talked to anybody who says she should not run.”
News political reporter Robert J. McCarthy contributed to this report.
