Then-Representative Mondaire Jones (D-NY) speaks at a press conference calling for the expansion of the Supreme Court on July 18, 2022, in Washington, D.C.
Photo: Jemal Countess/Getty Images for Take Back the C
Former congressman Mondaire Jones has waded into the contentious New York 16th Congressional District race, endorsing Westchester County executive George Latimer over incumbent congressman Jamaal Bowman. In the process, Jones has provoked the ire of his former progressive colleagues in the House.
Jones made his support official during a campaign event in Westchester on Tuesday, calling Latimer the “clear choice” to represent the district. He cited the ongoing conflict in Gaza and Bowman’s stance on Israel as the decisive factor in his endorsement. “I want to be very clear. I am making this endorsement to stand up for my Jewish constituents because Representative Bowman and I have very different views on Israel.”
The endorsement comes just weeks before the June 25 primary and as Bowman is facing an uphill climb in his reelection campaign. Bowman, a progressive, has been harshly critical of Israel’s operation in Gaza following the October 7 attacks by Hamas and has called for a permanent cease-fire. His more moderate opponent Latimer is backed by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, which has spent millions of dollars in the primary and run countless ads against Bowman.
Progressives in the House are upset with Jones for endorsing against Bowman, whom he previously served alongside in the chamber. The two served their first terms together after being sworn in back in 2021. In interviews with Semafor, Representative Cori Bush of Missouri called Jones’s move “disgusting,” and Summer Lee, a Pennsylvania congresswoman, said it was “incredibly disappointing.”
On social media, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez painted Jones’s endorsement as being at odds with Democrats’ goals for November. “Jamaal Bowman has earned support across the entire Democratic Party — from House leadership and the Congressional Black + Progressive Caucuses to Labor + grassroots — bc he is a proven, effective,& beloved leader. Dem unity means supporting Bowman. That’s how we win in November,” she wrote.
Jones is facing a difficult race of his own, challenging Republican congressman Mike Lawler in the 17th Congressional District for his former seat. After a tumultuous redistricting process in 2022, Jones opted to run in the newly open seat in the Tenth Congressional District after the then-chair of the Democratic campaign arm, Sean Patrick Maloney, announced his plans to run in Jones’s district. Jones would later come in third in that race.
Jones’s move against Bowman could come with some ramifications for his campaign. Business Insider reports that the Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC is considering rescinding its endorsement of Jones. Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, who’s the chair of the caucus, told the outlet, “I’m just horrified by it. I’m so disappointed.” However, his endorsement could help to bolster his support among moderate voters in his district.
Latimer has the support of 12 Democratic county committees, former governor David Paterson, the Civil Service Employees Association, and former representative Eliot Engel, whom Bowman unseated during his first bid for Congress. Bowman has been backed by Democratic leadership in the chamber, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Representative Nydia Velázquez, Senator Bernie Sanders, the United Auto Workers, and the Working Families Party, which seems unconcerned by Jones’s snub of the congressman.
“We don’t give much weight to the endorsement. Voters know that Jamaal shows up for his district, and has since his days as a principal and teacher,” said Ravi Mangla, a spokesman for the Working Families Party, in a statement.
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