HUDSON, N.Y. — In the rolling hills of upstate New York, two swing districts — stretching across the dairy farms and post-industrial towns of the Hudson Valley and Southern Tier — offer a window into the battle for control of the House.
The high-stakes reelection campaigns of two freshman congressmen, one a Republican and the other a Democrat, show how moderates in both parties are messaging on hot-button issues from abortion to immigration.
In New York’s 19th District, Republican Rep. Marc Molinaro, once the nation’s youngest mayor, faces a well-financed challenge from attorney and former congressional staffer Josh Riley. The race has turned into one of the nation’s most bitter House contests. It’s also a rematch of the 2022 midterm race in which Molinaro flipped the then-open seat by a margin of fewer than 5,000 votes.