Tom Suozzi vs. Maji Pilip vying for seat to replace George Santos

Great Neck, New York
CNN
—

Just four years ago, President Joe Biden led New York’s 3rd Congressional District by 8 points. George Santos, a new Republican lawmaker here, was expelled from the House of Representatives after a damning scandal.

Democratic leaders then selected former congressman Tom Suozzi, a native with decades of political experience, to replace Mazi Melesa Pilip, a little-known Republican who was just emerging on the national scene. I made the safe choice of choosing Mr.

And, leaving little to chance, Democrats are storming the airwaves, outscoring Republicans by nearly $4 million in the two-month race to fill Santos’ seat.

But with just over a week left until the Feb. 13 special election, Democrats are sounding the alarm.

“It’s a very tough seat,” Suozzi told CNN. “Democrats have been losing everything in northeast Long Island and Queens for the past three years. The Democratic brand is suffering here, and we have to do a lot to overcome it.” It won’t.”

Mr. Suozzi’s frank warning underscores the situation that those in both parties find themselves in in the final stages of the campaign. Voter anger over the treatment of the southern border is a central issue, especially as large numbers of immigrants are being sent to New York. They currently live in the area, which includes Queens and parts of Long Island. It’s a strategy that reflects the success of the Republican campaign in 2022 and beyond, when Republicans harshly criticized crime in New York City, a strategy Suozzi acknowledged still hurts the Democratic Party’s brand.

Suozzi, who is currently enduring an onslaught of Republican attacks on immigration and has been forced to run two ads defending himself, has touted his push for legislation and support for a bipartisan Senate agreement. They are trying to take control of the problem by promoting it.

And Mr. Suozzi, 61, a former county executive who represented the 3rd Congressional District for six years before running for governor in 2022, has done so in an effort to distance himself from his own unpopular president. Is going. Republicans are trying to connect with him.

When asked if he would like President Biden to participate in the final stages of the campaign, Suozzi said, “I can almost guarantee that the president will not come campaigning.” “I don’t think it’s helpful, just like I don’t think Donald Trump is helpful to my enemies.”

Suozzi added: “This race is really local. Suozzi vs. Serious.”

Pillip has a different assessment of the party’s presidential front-runner.

“He’s a great president,” she said of Trump. When asked if she would like to campaign with him, Pilip replied: “Of course, you are welcome to help me…I would appreciate it if you could come and help me.”

What happens in next week’s special election will have repercussions across the political spectrum. Mr. Pillip’s victory would be a huge shock to Republicans, giving them a strategy to replicate policies that criticize immigrants and Mr. Biden in battleground states and states across the country.

But Suozzi’s victory would be a major step for Democrats as they aim to regain a majority. The fall battle for control of the chamber, where Republicans have the largest majority, will center on a handful of seats held by New York’s freshman Republicans. .

But even though Biden won the district by 8 points, turnout in the special election is expected to be significantly lower, making it unclear which party will have an advantage. Additionally, the Nassau County Republican Party is widely considered to be a well-organized political machine, which could give Mr. Pillip a big boost. And this diverse district has a strong group of independent voters and working-class Democrats, a mix of voters who have long led Republicans to success in local elections.

Additionally, Pilip, a 44-year-old Ethiopian-born Israeli immigrant who served in the Israel Defense Forces, presented a unique challenge for Democrats. Pillip, who has been a member of the county council since 2021, is not well known throughout the district. And despite being selected by local party leaders as the Republican candidate in the special election, Pilip is registered as a Democrat.

But the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s first ad attacking Pilip labeled her a “MAGA handpick,” which sources said irritated Suozzi and her allies. . The reason: Democratic critics were concerned about her giving credibility to the Republican base and energizing Trump supporters in a low-turnout election.

Asked if he agreed with the DCCC’s attack on Pilip, Suozzi said: She has no idea what she represents. She’s really opaque and opaque in this race, so you don’t really know what she represents. ”

Pillip wouldn’t call herself a “MAGA Republican,” but she said many immigrants initially registered as Democratic voters — just like she did.

“But you know, the Democrats left me and a lot of other people,” Pillip said.

Suozzi attacks Pilip for keeping his opinions private, a notion she tries to dispel.

“That’s another lie,” Pilip said. “He’s under a lot of stress. He’s feeling it. I’m going to win this election.”

In an interview with CNN, Pilip shared some of his views. She opposes abortion rights, saying abortion laws should be left to each state, and she supports the Supreme Court’s decision that defeated Roe v. Wade, she said. Although she opposes a national ban on abortion, she does not support the codification of Roe.

“I trust the Supreme Court,” Pillip said. “They made the right decision to move it to the states.”

And she attacked Mr. Suozzi over a Democratic ad suggesting Mr. Pilip supports a national abortion ban.

“What I’m saying is that this party, the Democratic Party, will do whatever it takes to stay in power. That’s all,” she said. “They don’t have any rules.”

Regarding gun control, Pillip said he opposes the use of automatic weapons, which are already heavily regulated under federal law. But she indicated she would not support reinstating a ban on semi-automatic rifles like the AR-15.

“Again, the only thing I don’t support is automatic weapons,” she said.

He also said he supports making Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas the second-ever Cabinet member to impeach him, and while he supports an investigation into Biden, he indicated he is not ready to support impeachment just yet.

“No one is above the law, so the House has a duty to investigate everyone,” she said.

However, while Pillip said she would support Trump if he were the candidate, she declined to say whether she voted for him in 2016 or 2020.

“That happened three years ago,” Pilip said. “I wasn’t even an elected official.”

Suozzi says Pilip’s answer about Trump won’t get across.

“For most people, it’s a personal decision,” Suozzi said. “She’s running for U.S. Congress. Who did you support in 2016 and 2020?”

Pillip said she would support Trump if he became the nominee, but declined to say whether she would support him even if he were convicted.

Asked if she would support Trump if he were convicted, she said, “I don’t want to answer that.” “He was a great president and he accomplished great things.”

She then attacked prosecutors against the former president, going after Manhattan prosecutor Alvin Bragg, who led the prosecution in the hush-money case. She also dismissed federal charges against Trump, including allegations that he mishandled classified records in a federal lawsuit over his efforts to overturn the 2020 election results and a Georgia lawsuit.

“I know he didn’t commit a crime.”

And Pillip did not say whether he would hold Trump responsible for the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

“These are the same people who are going after (Trump) again based on political motives. That’s very dangerous for our country. We have to stop it. .”

Suozzi had a less glowing review of the leader, saying: “I approve of many of the things he did, but not others.”

On immigration, Suozzi said Biden should have been more proactive on the border issue.

“I want the president to do a better job on immigration,” Suozzi said. “Take ownership of the problems they’re attacking. Propose comprehensive, bipartisan solutions. And if Republicans go along with that, great, we move forward as a country. If you don’t follow that, they’ll say, ‘Hey, are you just playing politics?’

Now that the Senate is proposing a bipartisan agreement, Suozzi has “flipped the script” and said Republicans are “just trying to politicize and weaponize the problem instead of actually solving it.” He said he intended to do so.

Pillip has said he supports House Republicans’ border security bill, HR-2, a conservative proposal that Senate Democrats have called a “non-starter.” Asked if he thought the House should vote on the Senate agreement passed by the House, he said he would wait to see the details first.

“When I go to Congress, I’m going to come up with a plan to secure our borders,” she said.

Ashley Corum contributed to this report.