5 NY Republicans are fighting like hell to get reelected. Trump barely mentioned them

President Donald Trump rallied in one of the most closely watched battleground congressional districts both in New York and around the country on Wednesday – but you wouldn’t have been able to tell from listening to his hour-and-a-half long speech to supporters. He only mentioned Long Island’s two freshman Republican members of Congress once during his campaign event there, instead focusing on the unlikely prospect that he could succeed in winning the traditionally deep-blue state. But Republicans expect that his presence alone so soon before the election will boost local candidates in tough races. 

Trump spoke at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in his first New York campaign rally since 2017. That’s in the district of Rep. Anthony D’Esposito, who first won the 4th Congressional District in 2022 when the previous Democratic representative decided not to run for reelection. His is one of five seats that Democrats in New York are trying very hard to flip. Although the state usually doesn’t receive much attention due to the fact that it’s not in play during presidential races, Republican victories in 2022 helped the party gain control of the House. Elections here may play a determining role once again. 

D’Esposito attended and spoke at the Wednesday rally along with fellow Long Island GOP freshman Nick LaLota, who won the 1st Congressional District once held by former Republican Rep. Lee Zeldin. The pair are both facing serious challenges from Democrats, who hope to oust them during a presidential year – when Democrats tend to perform better – before they have a chance to become more entrenched. And the left has reason for optimism after Rep. Tom Suozzi succeeded in flipping the 3rd Congressional District (his own old seat) in a February special election after the expulsion of former GOP Rep. George Santos.

Trump shouted out the two members, but not until roughly an hour into his speech. He didn’t mention that they faced tough reelections, nor the significance that their victories would have for Republicans to keep control of the House. “Nick LaLota,” Trump said to applause. “Thank you, great job. He's doing a good job.” 

The former president then shouted out D’Esposito. “Here's another one doing a good job – I gave him a big endorsement,” Trump said. “Anthony D'Esposito, he's doing a great job. Thank you Anthony. SALT, SALT Anthony. Remember fellas, SALT.” Trump was referencing his new campaign promise of reversing the cap on state and local tax deductions, a priority for suburban members of Congress from both sides of the aisle – including D’Esposito and LaLota – despite opposition from the right. The cap on the deduction was originally part of Trump’s 2017 tax law and is set to expire next year as long as lawmakers don’t take action.

Including his mention of Rep. Marc Molinaro from the Hudson Valley – “Marc Molinaro, great” – Trump spent less than a minute talking about vulnerable Republican incumbents and the significance of their races in maintaining GOP control of the House. He didn’t say where the members were from, or even that they were the serious target of Democrats. Instead, Trump spoke repeatedly about his ability to flip a state where Vice President Kamala Harris leads by 13 points in a head-to-head race and which a Democratic presidential candidate has won for decades. 

Trump also shouted out Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, an ally who invited him to the island, numerous times throughout the speech. He even spoke about Blakeman’s race three years ago, when he defeated a Democratic incumbent for the position and kick started a red wave on Long Island. “He won in an upset… He’s done such a good job,” Trump praised fairly early in his speech, well before mentioning the members of Congress. “He’s now unbeatable – they don’t even run anybody against him.” In reality, Democrats have not had an opportunity to run a candidate against Blakeman yet because he’s not up for his first reelection until next year. 

But that’s not a problem for D’Esposito, LaLota or other Republicans who say that Trump’s presence alone is an indicator of how serious their races are and his commitment to winning them. “President Trump’s visit to Congressman D’Esposito’s district itself highlights the national importance of the congressional race and reaffirms the fact that Long Island is undergoing a Republican resurgence in response to the failing policies of the Biden-Harris administration,” said D’Esposito spokesperson Matt Capp. LaLota spokesperson Will Kiley didn’t directly address the question about Trump’s mentions during the rally, but expressed confidence in both LaLota’s and D’Esposito’s ability to win reelection in a statement. 

Peter Giunta, chair of the New York State Young Republicans, said he doesn’t think that Trump needed to spend much time hyping up the local incumbents in potentially tight races. “Whether you’re running for president or Congress, the issues more or less align,” Giunta told City & State. “I think Trump talking about those issues specifically last night, talking about the economy, about crime, about the migrant crisis… I think talking about those issues alone fires up people in those districts to go out, and not just vote for Trump, but vote straight down the ballot for Republicans.

Speaking to reporters in Albany, Zeldin – now the chair of the Leadership America Needs PAC – said that he experienced firsthand the down-ballot drop off during an election year, when voters cast their ballot for president without weighing in on the rest of the races. He said that getting a shout out from the president at a rally like Wednesday’s will only help. “That just gets them more invested and excited, because the president, the presidential candidate who they support, is telling them to support that House candidate in their district,” said Zeldin, who also attended and spoke at the Long Island rally. “So I would say absolutely it’s a benefit.”