Beautiful Virgin Islands

Monday, Jul 14, 2025

Outgoing New York Rep. Kathleen Rice says she warned Democratic leaders that the party would 'lose' Long Island in the midterms

Outgoing New York Rep. Kathleen Rice says she warned Democratic leaders that the party would 'lose' Long Island in the midterms

Congresswoman Rice said Democrats faltered in local races on Long Island in 2021 because voters "wanted to send a message to Washington."
For much of the 20th Century, Long Island was a well-known Republican stronghold, serving as a counterbalance to the strongly Democratic politics of New York City.

From the 1990s through much of the past decade, Democrats made major gains in Nassau and Suffolk Counties, winning congressional districts and local offices that for years had favored Republican politicians.

But in recent years, Republicans have clawed back some of their strength, winning the county executive and district attorney races in Nassau in November 2021, while also winning the district attorney race in Suffolk that year. While former President Donald Trump lost New York State resoundingly in both 2016 and 2020, he won Suffolk each time.

In the November midterms, despite Democratic overperformance in suburbs across the country, Republicans had a major year in New York State, winning every congressional district anchored on Long Island — despite Democrats holding a party registration edge in both Nassau and Suffolk and controlling districts in the Hudson Valley and Upstate.

And outgoing four-term Democratic Rep. Kathleen Rice, who will be succeeded by GOP Rep.-elect Anthony D'Esposito next week, said in a recent Politico interview that she sounded the alarm to party leaders regarding her intuition about the state of play on Long Island ahead of the midterms.

Rice, a moderate who represents the Long Island-based 4th Congressional District and previously served as the Nassau County district attorney for nearly a decade, told the news outlet that her warnings about the dire prospects of Democrats in the suburbs of New York City went unheeded.

"This is a blue, blue state, and it's the reason why we lost the majority," Rice said. "We lost four House seats. I said [to party leaders], 'You guys, don't understand, we're gonna lose Long Island. And we're gonna lose some other seats, further up.' They said, 'No, no, no, your seat was a Biden +13.'"
"When we had elections in November of 2021, every single Democrat on Long Island lost. Not because they weren't popular and not because people didn't like them. But they wanted to send a message to Washington," she added.

While President Joe Biden easily won Rice's district in 2020, his standing among many Independents has taken a hit since then, despite the party holding its own in the midterms. Faced with the prospect of electing a swath of GOP candidates who rejected bipartisanship and continued to deny Biden's 2020 win, voters backed Democratic candidates in such dramatic fashion that the GOP severely underperformed nationally.

In November, the GOP gubernatorial nominee was Lee Zeldin, a retiring Long Island congressman who lost a competitive race against Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul. Zeldin whittled down the normally-massive Democratic edge statewide as his coattails helped elect D'Esposito, along with GOP Reps.-elect Nick LaLota and George Santos, to Long Island-anchored districts. (Santos in recent days has come under fire for a growing list of false claims about his background after a New York Times investigation pointed out inconsistencies in his work history and finances.)

In a state that voted for Biden by a whopping 23 points (61%-38%) in 2020, GOP victories in New York State — fueled by a focus on economic and public safety issues — delivered the party a razor-thin US House majority.

Democrats, who still maintain control of the Governor's Mansion and the state legislature, along with holding both US Senate seats, remain the dominating force in state politics.

However, the midterms proved that while the Republican brand on Long Island may have faltered in the 1990s and 2000s, that is certainly not the case today.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Defends Attorney General Pam Bondi Amid Epstein Memo Backlash
Renault Shares Drop as CEO Luca de Meo Announces Departure Amid Reports of Move to Kering
Senior Aides for King Charles and Prince Harry Hold Secret Peace Summit
Anti‑Semitism ‘Normalised’ in Middle‑Class Britain, Says Commission Co‑Chair
King Charles Meets David Beckham at Chelsea Flower Show
If the Department is Really About Justice: Ghislaine Maxwell Should Be Freed Now
NYC Candidate Zohran Mamdani’s ‘Antifada’ Remarks Spark National Debate on Political Language and Economic Policy
President Trump Visits Flood-Ravaged Texas, Praises Community Strength and First Responders
From Mystery to Meltdown, Crisis Within the Trump Administration: Epstein Files Ignite A Deepening Rift at the Highest Levels of Government Reveals Chaos, Leaks, and Growing MAGA Backlash
Trump Slams Putin Over War Death Toll, Teases Major Russia Announcement
Reparations argument crushed
Rainmaker CEO Says Cloud Seeding Paused Before Deadly Texas Floods
A 92-year-old woman, who felt she doesn't belong in a nursing home, escaped the death-camp by climbing a gate nearly 8 ft tall
French Journalist Acquitted in Controversial Case Involving Brigitte Macron
Elon Musk’s xAI Targets $200 Billion Valuation in New Fundraising Round
Kraft Heinz Considers Splitting Off Grocery Division Amid Strategic Review
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
EU Proposes New Tax on Large Companies to Boost Budget
Trump Imposes 35% Tariffs on Canadian Imports Amid Trade Tensions
Junior Doctors in the UK Prepare for Five-Day Strike Over Pay Disputes
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Biden’s Doctor Pleads the Fifth to Avoid Self-Incrimination on President’s Medical Fitness
Grok Chatbot Faces International Backlash for Antisemitic Content
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
×