One of the top Democrats who is running for reelection in a tight race said Sunday that he believes Democrats are “going to do better than people think on Tuesday,” adding that his party is “not perfect” but “we are responsible adults who believe in this democracy.”
Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D-N.Y.), who chairs the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, faces a tough challenge in Tuesday’s midterm elections from Republican Mike Lawler, who serves on the New York State Assembly. Maloney represents a suburban district north of New York City, which the Democrat says has always been competitive since he was first elected in 2013.
“I’ve always had a tough race, Chuck,” Maloney told NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday. “I beat a Republican to have this seat. I’m the first gay person ever elected to Congress from New York. I’m raising an interracial family in a county Donald Trump won in 2016 by 20 points. It has always been improbable that I would serve in the Congress. I have to go out and earn it every two years.”
President Joe Biden is expected to campaign in suburban New York on Sunday, in an effort to use the last few days before the election to sway voters toward vulnerable Democratic candidates like Maloney. After a messy redistricting process in New York that proved disadvantageous for Democrats, the congressman decided to run in the state’s new 17th District instead of his current seat in the 18th District.
“I think this race is razor-close, and I think everybody who cares about the extremism in this MAGA movement ― the racism, the antisemitism, the violence ― needs to get out and vote,” Maloney said. “And that’s not just Democrats, that’s independents and fair-minded Republicans.”
Maloney is not the only vulnerable Democrat in this year’s midterm elections. Republicans are eyeing major gains on Tuesday ― specifically in the House ― and are appealing to supporters in the final days to punish Democrats for issues like inflation, public safety, women’s reproductive rights and LGBTQ rights.
At the local level, Democratic candidates have been campaigning on topics like the economy, jobs and abortion rights ― which polls have shown are important to voters. At the national level, however, there is a much bigger stress on how Republican victories, particularly those by far-right, election-denying candidates, could threaten the future of American democracy.
“Look, what I’m telling you is we’re not perfect, but we are responsible adults who didn’t attack the Capitol on Jan. 6, didn’t try to whitewash it. [We] don’t pretend we’re for law enforcement and then ignore 140 cops getting beat up on that horrible day,” Maloney said.
“We’re not perfect, but we’ve got a plan for gun violence and for bringing jobs back from China. You don’t like it, what’s yours? We took on the big drug companies. The other side won’t do that 'cause they’re awash in big drug company money,” he continued. “No, we’re not perfect, Chuck. We’ve got all kinds of things we can do better. But we are responsible adults who believe in this democracy and we’re fighting for a better future.”