She had come off a presidential bid that ended before the first primary contests, faced criticism for her role in former-Sen. From making gun trafficking a federal crime to securing health benefits for 9/11 survivors to bringing home hundreds of millions of dollars for projects that will boost the economy, Senator Gillibrand has consistently gotten real results.”īut it wasn’t too long ago when Gillibrand’s future was less certain. In a statement, Gillibrand spokesperson Evan Lukaske said she is “excited to run on her record of delivering for New York families. Gillibrand’s also in “regular” conversation with Jeffries about the coordinated campaign, according to a person close to Gillibrand’s campaign. State party officials are already developing a collaborative campaigning and fundraising effort led by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.). “That will be an important focus for the WFP.” “2024 will be a big year and will be vital to taking back Congress,” the person said. “It’s using up resources we need to preserve for more coordinated work and the rest.”Ĭamille Rivera, a New York-based progressive strategist, said competitive primaries often benefit democracy and candidates, but that a Democratic contest at this time in New York “could be pretty bruising and give a Republican a leg up.”Ī Democratic strategist close to the Working Families Party, a liberal group founded in New York, said there isn’t any appetite within the organization to challenge Gillibrand. And unless you think you can win, it’s divisive unnecessarily,” said Jay Jacobs, chair of the New York Democratic Party. And many top state Democratic officials said they want to avoid an acrimonious primary in order to focus on recovering those House seats and protecting battleground members like Rep. The party saw four House seats flip to Republican during the midterms. Gillibrand is also benefiting from the bruises New York Democrats suffered in 2022. That included having what she called a “lovely lunch” with Ocasio-Cortez and her chief of staff in the Senate Dining Room in January. Indeed, Gillibrand maintains strong personal relationships that may have deterred some challengers, allies and supporters said. Previously, there had been talk among Ocasio-Cortez’s former aides that she could run. If the congresswoman follows through with her intention to skip a Senate bid, it would go a long way toward smoothing the path to reelection for Gillibrand, whose main concern has been the political challenges she faces from within her party. But her comment is the most definitive statement to date that a 2024 Senate campaign is not in the cards. Ocasio-Cortez saying she isn’t planning to run is different from her declaring that she won’t. Political calculations can change, of course. AOC renews call to impeach Clarence Thomas amid scandal
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