Marc Molinaro says upstate voters aren’t buying what Democrats are selling

Republican Rep. Marc Molinaro is gearing up for his 19th Congressional District rematch against Democrat Josh Riley. This time around, Molinaro has the advantage of incumbency and is reportedly 8 points up in the polls.

Like many of his colleagues in the New York GOP delegation, Molinaro is doing his part in a Republican effort to hold on to their progress from 2022. The state now holds an outsized role in national politics as the majority in Congress hinges on a few seats. Molinaro sees the new reality in the Empire State as a result of years of Democratic policies and rhetoric.

Molinaro caught up with City & State on his way to the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee and discussed the state of politics in New York, his race and the overarching themes of this year’s general election cycle. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. 

What’s your take on the Democrats’ strategy this cycle?

I think for two years, they’ve tried to tell upstate New Yorkers and Americans to not believe what they saw when they argued and consistently continue to argue that the border wasn’t as bad as it was, that costs weren’t as high, that the challenges people faced weren’t as real or that communities weren’t as unsafe. Ordinary New Yorkers, ordinary Americans know they are and here we are, in a position where, frankly, having nearly any day I’m not in Washington, I’m in the community. I lived in upstate New York, served in upstate New York and raised my family in upstate New York, buy my groceries in upstate New York and pay my bills and my taxes in upstate New York. I know that the people I serve are overwhelmed by costs and have serious concerns about the surrender at the southern border and they know that policies out of Washington and Albany have made us less safe and life more expensive. And in my case, they’re not interested in listening to a Washington, D.C., lawyer, who lives in a multimillion-dollar house in Washington, D.C., somehow tell them that he knows better than they do.

Do you think Democrats in New York have not learned any lessons from 2022?

I’ve lived in these communities long enough to know that what the Democrats are trying to sell, people just don’t want to buy.

Do you think it comes down to a sort of lack of emphasis placed on kitchen table issues, or would you say the party is out of touch?

There is an overall sense of being divorced from reality. In my case, you have a scenario where Josh Riley comes to Ithaca thinking you can buy a congressional seat, which was reflected in the poll. We just work hard and I take every vote seriously, and certainly nothing for granted. But there’s a reason we’re leading by 9 points. In this case, there’s just not an appreciation for what folks are facing at the kitchen table.

I don’t think people would normally equate New York with an appetite for Republican politics. What would you put any openness to conservatism down to outside of dissatisfaction with certain policies?

The policies being pushed by folks like Josh Riley and downstate Democrats in New York, it certainly made it clear that they don’t care about the realities upstate New Yorkers face and so there’s always that opportunity. There ought to be a competitive balance in our state. We’re not wanting to wait. I think there is a real opportunity, so long as we continue to care and to respond to the issues that folks care about.

You’re in an upstate district; what role do policies and events happening in New York City play in this race?

I think most upstate New Yorkers know that policies in state government are driven by New York City and it’s too often we feel, and we see that we’re treated as somehow secondary to New York City. Cashless bail has made us unsafe, energy policies meant upstate New Yorkers have their environment trampled on for downstate New York energy policies. Just massive, massive spending out of Albany has driven up local property tax and Josh Riley supports that. And so at the end of the day, what they see is policies that are driven by New York City that are adopted by Albany Democrats, and that ultimately make us feel like second-class citizens in a state where the governor only two years ago basically said, “If you’re right of center, you should find a different place to live.”

Will New York-specific issues take a larger role nationally if New York Republicans manage to grow their ranks in Congress?

Anytime we have the opportunity to give a louder voice to the folks in upstate New York, the better off we will be.