Democrat Zak Malamed Drops Bid to Take on George Santos – On Wednesday morning, Democrat Zak Malamed announced that he was ending his campaign for the highly contested House seat currently occupied by Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) and threw his support behind former Rep. Tom Suozzi.
Malamed’s choice to withdraw from the race a year ahead of the election aligns with the Democratic party’s strategy to concentrate on flipping approximately five House seats in New York, a move aimed at regaining control of the closely divided chamber. “Nominating Tom Suozzi is our best chance to flip this district blue and end the toxic hold that MAGA Republicans have on Long Island and Congress at large,” Malamed said in a statement.
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“I have spent the past five months knocking on doors, speaking to voters and energizing donors across the district. I look forward to continuing that work to win this election and to inspire the next generation of leadership.” The seat is presently occupied by Republican Santos, who is confronting felony fraud allegations. Santos’ legal troubles and his admission of embellishing a significant portion of his personal history have prompted his fellow New York Republicans to advocate for his removal from the House.
However, their efforts to expel him from the House have thus far met with resistance. Malamed was one of the Democratic candidates vying for the nomination in the third district, which includes areas of Nassau County and Queens. The competition is fierce, as former state Sen. Anna Kaplan, Josh Lafazan, William Murphy, Steve Behar, Scott Livingston, Austin Cheng, and Darius Radzius have all submitted their candidacy for the Democratic nomination in the same district.
Malamed had initially shown remarkable fundraising prowess, with his campaign disclosing $524,000 in cash reserves in October, following a three-month period in which they raised $302,000. Nonetheless, Democrats are eager to prevent a contentious primary. Suozzi, who had previously mounted an unsuccessful primary campaign against incumbent Democrat Kathy Hochul for the governor’s position last year, threw his hat in the ring for his former House seat in October.
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