Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro (R-NY) defeated attorney Josh Riley (D-NY), flipping a closely watched upstate New York House district to GOP control.
Molinaro was elected to represent New York’s 19th Congressional District just months after Rep. Pat Ryan (D-NY) edged him out in a special election to replace former Rep. Antonio Delgado. Delgado resigned on May 25 to become lieutenant governor of New York. After the state was forced to redraw its congressional map earlier this year, Ryan decided to seek his first full term in office in the newly drawn 18th Congressional District.
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Molinaro had been favored to defeat Ryan, a former executive of Ulster County and Army intelligence officer, in the special election this spring, but Chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee Tom Emmer (R-MN) dismissed concerns that the Democrat’s victory was a harbinger of lackluster GOP performance to come in the fall.
“Special elections are not very good predictors of general elections,” Emmer said. “Marc Molinaro is going to win. [GOP nominee for New York’s 18th Congressional District] Colin Schmitt is going to win.”
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Delgado flipped the seat for Democrats amid the so-called blue wave of 2018, ousting freshman Rep. John Faso (R-NY).
The 19th Congressional District was viewed as among the most competitive for both parties this election cycle. The district has a partisan voter index of R+1.
