Former congressman would run for old seat
Sean Patrick Maloney, a Philipstown resident who served five terms in the U.S. House before losing his seat to Mike Lawler in 2022, is mulling whether to run for the seat again in 2026, according to Axios, which cited “people familiar with the matter.”
Maloney, who was the chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee at the time, lost to Lawler by 3,200 votes among more than 278,000 cast. Lawler, who was easily re-elected in 2024, defeating Mondaire Jones, is considering whether to run for governor in 2026.
Maloney was confirmed in March 2024 by the Senate as the U.S. representative to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, based in Paris. He returned to New York earlier this year.
In response to the Axios report, Lawler posted on X: “With at least seven far-left candidates already announced in the Democrat primary for New York’s 17th district, I’m sure Democrats are excited about the prospects of Sean Patrick Maloney making a comeback — because it worked out so well the last time.”
I am a lifelong, straight-blue-line voting Democrat, and I say no to Sean Patrick Maloney. He lost to Mike Lawler because Maloney fought harder against the Democratic base, the Democratic left and the Democratic youth than he fought against his extreme right-wing Republican opponent. If our Democratic Party wants a future, and wants to win, it must stop working in favor of its big donors and start working to uphold the will of the people. Remember, Maloney wanted to build a fossil-fuel-burning plant right across the river from us. We live in the birthplace of so many environmental organizations and heroes. The Congressional Black Caucus accused Maloney of “putting his own political survival over the interests of the party” just before he lost in 2022. Another time Maloney ran for attorney general, not to win, but to stop Zephyr Teachout. This political maneuver was designed to manipulate democracy to represent big donors at the expense of hardworking Democratic families. If the Democratic Party stopped suppressing its base and started representing us, voters would show up, and we would start winning again. We have young people in our town ready to knock on doors, but they are not going to do it for Maloney. Where has Maloney been lately? He has been in Paris working as a U.S. ambassador to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Maloney got this position after losing to Lawler, as a reward for crushing the young, left base of the Democratic party, as the chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Why is Maloney… Read more »
Thank you, Alex, for so clearly describing my aversion to another congressional run by Maloney. The last thing the Democratic Party needs now is more of the uber-wealthy, banking/hedge fund managerial elite who have proven time and time again their disconnect and disdain for middle-class Democrats. While in office, Maloney’s behavior toward Cold Spring and Philipstown residents showed little, if any, concern for the issues that affect his local supporters. I’ll never forget his aloof demeanor when he deigned to show up for Cold Spring’s Memorial Day observances. I introduced myself and offered to shake his hand and received only a dead-fish handshake, zero eye-contact or acknowledgement while he looked around for the local Democratic Party big wigs. He was so noticeably absent from Philipstown when campaigning for his seat against Lawler (ugh), choosing instead to court votes in solid Republican areas of the district, which makes sense, of course. But this tells us that he takes longtime, dependable supporters for granted and a lack of any interest how the changes wrought by Trump were wreaking havoc on ordinary Philipstowners. Obviously, the Democratic Party needs to reassess and redefine its mission and approach to the electorate. The conflict within the party has been clearly exemplified in microcosm by the actions and self-inflicted damage done by our local Democratic committee. Geez people — that means you, Maloney, Schumer, Gillibrand and Philipstown Dems — read the writing on the wall! If you want more of the same, go ahead and keep pushing… Read more »