News · Press Release

💥CAIT-MENTUM: Mike Lawler “in The Fight of His Life” as Momentum Surges Behind Cait Conley in NY-17

Conley is up in the polls, brought in a record-shattering fundraising haul, and delivered a commanding debate performance against Lawler
Nearly two weeks out from election day, momentum is building behind Army combat vet Cait Conley’s campaign to flip New York’s 17th Congressional District blue.

Cait shattered records with her “absolutely shocking” $5.3 million Q3 fundraising haul, raking in almost three times as much cash as her incumbent opponent. “Polls say Lawler is facing a very tough fight to win a third term,” with Cait leading 48% – 46% in the most recent independent polling of the race. And Cait is coming off a dominant debate performance where she went viral for telling Lawler not to “mansplain” domestic abuse to her and “put Lawler off balance” with “unending references to his support for Trump.”

DCCC Spokesperson Riya Vashi:
“Mike Lawler has spent his time in Washington enriching himself and bending the knee to his party bosses while raising prices for Hudson Valley families. MAGA Republicans are spending record cash here to try and salvage his flailing campaign — but as voters learn more about Lapdog Lawler’s record of caving to Trump and special interests, it becomes more and more clear that New Yorkers are ready for change and will elect Cait Conley to fight for them.”

What they’re saying about Cait-mentum:

  • Lohud: “Democrat Cait Conley has far outpaced Republican Rep. Mike Lawler in recent fundraising, with new records showing her campaign raked in almost three times as much as the incumbent’s over three months in their high-profile House race.”
  • NY Daily News: “Rep. Mike Lawler was trashed by his Democratic opponent for “mansplaining” to her about the legal issues surrounding the Cornell gang rape probe during their crucial final debate as the midterm fight for the suburban NY-17 congressional district enters the home stretch.

    “…Conley, a military veteran, also put Lawler off balance by repeatedly tying him to President Trump’s unpopular policies. […] Analysts said Conley succeeded in staying on message and getting Lawler out of his comfort zone with unending references to his support for Trump, which cast doubt on his image as an effective critic of the leader of his own party.”

  • City & State: “Lawler knows what’s at stake, and tries his best to remind voters he only agrees with President Donald Trump most of the time. Meanwhile, Conley’s busy campaigning against the status quo.”
  • Daily Kos: “A thousand supporters had gathered for a campaign to defeat Lawler, the fake-moderate MAGA acolyte of President Donald Trump, and help Democrats take back the House. […] The enthusiasm was for Conley and the fight ahead. Her biography, her positions, and her credibility were the substance of the evening.”
  • New York Times: “Ms. Conley’s military service and patriotic message will help her to replicate the successes of other women who used their military careers to connect with voters outside the Democratic base […] The strategy may be particularly effective in this district in the lower Hudson Valley, where nearly a third of all voters are unaffiliated and roughly half of all households include an emergency medical worker, law enforcement officer or veteran.”

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