New York Primaries Set Up Tight House Fight

New York’s state primary on Tuesday puts Democratic House nomination contests in the spotlight, including battles across Manhattan, Brooklyn and the Bronx that could shape the party’s lineup for the November fight over Congress. Voters will also choose a Democ

On Tuesday night, New York’s primary results won’t just decide winners in a handful of races. They could also preview the political identity the Democrats bring into the closely watched U.S. House elections in November—especially where the state’s usually “safe” districts are suddenly contested.

The Democratic nomination contests for New York’s seats in the closely divided U.S. House take center stage in a state primary where relatively few of the state’s top officeholders will be on the ballot.

One incumbent who isn’t up for election but is already shaping the campaign is New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani. He is looking to influence the city’s congressional delegation through a series of endorsements, including endorsements for challengers to two Democratic incumbents.

In the 10th Congressional District in Lower Manhattan and parts of Brooklyn, two-term Democratic U.S. Rep. Dan Golden faces a challenge from former New York City Comptroller Brad Lander. Lander has endorsements from Mamdani and Vermont U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders. Mamdani and Lander were former mayoral campaign rivals.

In the 13th Congressional District in Upper Manhattan and parts of the Bronx, five-term Democratic U.S. Rep. Adriano Espaillat faces three primary challengers. One of them is Darializa Avila Chevalier, described as a doctoral student and political organizer, who also has Mamdani’s backing.

In the 7th Congressional District straddling Brooklyn and Queens, retiring 17-term Democratic U.S. Rep. Nydia Velázquez has endorsed Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso. Reynoso faces a tough race against state Assemblywoman Claire Valdez, who has endorsements from Mamdani and Sanders.

Manhattan’s 12th Congressional District is open after retiring Democratic U.S. Rep. Jerry Nadler, with eight Democrats running to succeed him. The top contenders include state Assemblymen Alex Bores and Micah Lasher. attorney and Donald Trump critic and former Republican George Conway. and Kennedy family scion Jack Schlossberg. Conway leads the field in fundraising, but Lasher has endorsements from Nadler, Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul, and former independent New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

North of the city in the 17th Congressional District, five Democrats are trying to unseat two-term Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Lawler, who is unopposed for the nomination. The field includes former White House counterterrorism official and Army combat veteran Cait Conley. Rockland County Legislator Beth Davidson. and Tarrytown Village Trustee Effie Phillips-Staley. Conley leads in fundraising and has available cash as of early June, followed by Davidson, with Phillips-Staley a distant third.

On Long Island, vulnerable Democratic freshmen Reps. Tom Suozzi and Laura Gillen are defending their seats in the 3rd and 4th Congressional Districts, respectively. Both face contested primaries.

In the massive 21st Congressional District in upstate New York, Republican U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik is not seeking a seventh term after an aborted run for governor and a withdrawn nomination for United Nations Ambassador. State Assemblyman Robert Smullen has local party officials’ backing to replace her. while business owner Anthony Constantino has an endorsement from Trump.

Beyond the House races, the only statewide contest on Tuesday is the Democratic primary for state comptroller. The five-term incumbent, Tom DiNapoli, faces his first-ever primary challenge after almost 20 years in office.

Hochul and state Attorney General Letitia James are running for reelection. but they are unopposed for their party’s nominations and do not appear on primary ballots. Their Republican counterparts, Bruce Blakeman and Saritha Komatireddy, are also unopposed. Under New York election law, primaries are not held in contests where only one candidate seeks the nomination.

Voters will also decide contested primaries for state Senate and state Assembly, with all 63 state Senate and 150 state Assembly seats up for election in 2026. Democrats hold about 2-to-1 majorities over Republicans in both chambers.

As votes are tallied, the timing and rules will shape how quickly the night’s picture comes into focus. Polls close at 9 p.m. ET.

Voters registered with a political party may participate only in their own party’s primary: Democrats may not vote in the Republican primary or vice versa, and independent or unaffiliated voters may not participate in either primary.

Election officials will start from a large registered base. As of Feb. 20. New York had about 13.4 million registered voters. including about 6.4 million registered Democrats. about 3 million registered Republicans and about 3.4 million voters not affiliated with any party. In 2022 primaries for governor, about 899,000 Democratic primary votes and about 451,000 Republican primary votes were cast.

Early participation matters too. About 20% of the 2022 primary vote was cast early in-person or by mail. That share rose to about 39% in the 2024 presidential primaries.

As of Wednesday, about 107,000 ballots had already been cast in Tuesday’s election.

New York counties and New York City tend to release all or almost all of their results from early voting and most of their results from mail voting in the first vote update of the night, usually before any results from in-person Election Day voting are released.

In the 2022 primary, the AP first reported results at 9:04 p.m. ET—four minutes after polls closed. The last vote update of the night was at 3:11 a.m. ET with about 95% of total votes counted.

The AP will declare a winner only when it’s determined there is no scenario that would allow a trailing candidate to close the gap. If a race has not been called. coverage continues for newsworthy developments such as candidate concessions or declarations of victory. with clear explanation that a winner has not yet been declared.

Recounts also follow specific triggers in New York. An automatic recount is triggered in races where more than 1 million votes are cast if the margin of victory is less than 5. 000 votes. For smaller races. the automatic recount is triggered if the margin of victory is 20 votes or less or 0.5% or less of the total votes cast. The AP may still declare a winner even if a recount is possible if it can determine the lead is too large for a recount or legal challenge to change the outcome.

With the midterms still ahead—there will be 133 days until the 2026 midterm elections—Tuesday’s contests land like a preview. In districts where Democrats are fighting their own party’s next standard-bearers, the outcome will be more than a nomination. It will be a signal about who the party chooses to put forward when the national stakes return in November.

New York primary U.S. House nominations Zohran Mamdani endorsements Tom DiNapoli state comptroller Democratic primary Dan Golden Brad Lander Adriano Espaillat Darializa Avila Chevalier Nydia Velázquez Antonio Reynoso Claire Valdez Jerry Nadler successor race Kamala Harris 2024 district polls close 9 p.m. ET