Election results for Primary and Special Election for 23rd Congressional District as of August 25, 2022

Republican Nick Langworthy will face Democrat Max Della Pia in November’s General Election for the 23rd Congressional seat.

Langworthy won the Republican primary for the new 23rd district against Carl Paladino on Tuesday. According to the State Board of Elections, with 423 of 424 districts reporting, Langworthy received 24,275 vote compared with Paladino’s 22,283 votes.

Republican Joe Sempolinski defeated Della Pia in the special election on Tuesday to fill the remainder of former Congressman Tom Reed‘s term in the current 23rd Congressional Seat. Sempolinski receved 52.8% of the vote to Della Pia’s 46.3%, with all districts reporting.

Sempolinski released a statement saying,

“It is the honor of a lifetime to be selected by my friends and neighbors to speak for them on the floor of the US House of Representatives. I intend to spend my time in Congress fighting for the people that have given me everything in my life. I will work to make sure that the voice of the Southern Tier and Finger Lakes is heard throughout the remainder of this Congressional term. One of the chief things that makes our nation great is that we are governed by representatives chosen by and from among the people. To be selected as one of those representatives, even for a few months, is a sacred duty.”

23rd Congressional District Republican Primary Candidate Nick Langworthy with State Assemblyman Andy Goodell and Chautauqua County Executive PJ Wendel (August 15, 2022)

23rd Congressional Republican Primary candidate Nick Langworthy received two endorsements at a stop in Jamestown Monday.

Chautauqua County Executive PJ Wendel and State Assemblyman Andy Goodell both offered their support to the Chautauqua County native who is facing Carl Paladino in a bid to win the chance to appear on the Republican line in November.

Langworthy was born in Jamestown and graduated from Pine Valley High School. He has been the State GOP Chairman for the last three years.

Langworthy said if elected, he wants to fight for energy independence, “It’s a speculative market, energy is. And when the President comes in on day one and says, ‘We’re shutting down the Keystone pipeline. We’re making it harder to drill, and we’re tightening on leases,’ that tells the energy sector, ‘We’re closed for business.’ While the other parts of the Southern Tier have the Saudi Arabia of natural gas. And our state government stands in the way of us drilling for that gas safely, just like they do in the state of Pennsylvania. And it’s cost us job after job, opportunity after opportunity, meanwhile Pennsylvania booms by comparison.”

Langworthy also wants to see the wall on the southern U.S. border get completed and to get the country out of some of the free trade agreements in order to encourage more products to be made in the United States. He added he would be an advocate for agriculture and that he believes the United States can be another bread basket for the world.

Langworthy added that while he and Paladino probably would have similar voting records, there are differences, “I’m not going to embarrass this community. And I can’t say that for my opponent. He’s got a track record. When people have counted on him, many of us counted on him to carry the ball when he ran for governor and he blew it. And he blew it in historic fashion. And when you had the same thing for the school board. He was supposed to fix the school board and he blew it. And the Buffalo City Schools suffered even more because of his behavior. That won’t happen with me.”

Early voting for the Republican Primary and the special election for the 23rd Congressional District continues until Sunday, August 21st. The last day to vote will be the primary day of Tuesday, August 23rd. Visit votechautauqua.com for more information.

Map Created by Irena Raia

Early voting for the special election for the 23rd Congressional District and the Republican Primary for the 23rd District begins Saturday.

Chautauqua County Board of Elections Commissioner Brian Abram said everyone who is a registered voter in Chautauqua County is eligible to vote in the special election, “So the door is wide open for everybody to walk in and decide on the special election between Max Della Pia and Joe Sempolinski on who they want to serve out the rest of Tom Reed‘s 23rd Congressional District until the end of the year. The next phase is, every Republican walking in the door will be entitled to two ballots. Because not only will they be able to participate in the special, but there is a primary going on between Nick Langworthy and Carl Paladino.”

Abram said that primary will determine which Republican will be on the ballot in November against Democratic candidate Max Della Pia.

He added that once the special election results are certified, the winning candidate will be sworn in to serve out the remainder of Tom Reed’s term in Congress.

Early voting will continue through Sunday, August 21 and will take place at the Chautauqua County Fairgrounds, the Robert H. Jackson Center in Jamestown, the Chautauqua Mall in Lakewood, and at the Board of Elections offices in Mayville. Hours for early voting, sample ballots and more can be found at votechautauqua.com

The official primary and special election day is Tuesday, August 23 with polls open from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. that day.

Carl Paladino announced on Thursday he’s retained counsel and will personally fund a federal lawsuit challenging the state’s new concealed carry measures on behalf of the people of New York. Prominent Buffalo-area attorney Paul Cambria will represent him and they hope to file in federal court by this morning.

The State Legislature passed the Concealed Carry Improvement Act following a U.S. Supreme Court decision that struck down a long-standing state law requiring pistol permit holders to show proper cause in order to carry a concealed firearm in public.

Paladino said he agrees with pieces of the law, like strengthened background checks and required safety training, but in general believes the act is unconstitutional.

He said they’re determining exactly what will be in the suit.

Meanwhile, New York Republican Party Chairman Nick Langworthy pledged to sue last week as well and announced the Republican Party will partner with the state Conservative Party.

Paladino said he believes it’s a conflict of interest for Langworthy, as state chair, to use state party resources to sue while advancing his own campaign simultaneously.

Paladino said he would be willing to partner with the New York State Rifle and Pistol Association, which said it has been pulling together its own legal resources. NYSRPA President Tom King, in a statement, also said however, he is 100% behind the GOP-Conservative Party effort.

Governor Kathy Hochul released a statement in response to any potential legal action, which reads, “Governor Hochul signed landmark legislation to save lives and combat the gun violence epidemic by carefully regulating access to concealed weapons, protecting public safety while abiding by the Supreme Court’s ruling in the Bruen case. We have no further comment on pending litigation.”

Nick Langworth, Carl Paladino (photo credit – Wikipedia)

WIVB is reporting that State GOP Chairman Nick Langworthy is running for the 23rd Congressional district.

The Buffalo TV station said sources confirmed that Langworthy is entering the race as Chris Jacobs’ substitution. A substitution can occur when there is a declination by another candidate.
Langworthy’s name will be on both the Republican and Conservative lines. Because of Jacobs’ declination, Langworthy does not need the required signatures typically needed to get on the ballot in a primary.

Jacobs’ decision not to run came after recent comments he made regarding gun laws that received extreme pushback from fellow Republicans.

Carl Paladino announced his run Friday in response to Chris Jacobs ending his bid to stay in the House.
Tompkins County legislator Mike Sigler previously said he would enter the race, but told WIVB on Friday that he would be stepping aside to put his support behind Langworthy.

Former Tom Reed staffer, Joe Sempolinski, stated on Twitter that he is only running in the Special Election to fill out the remaining term of his former boss. He said he has not made an endorsement for the primary yet.

Representation of the 23rd Congressional District is up for grabs following the resignation of Congressman Tom Reed last month. He had announced more than a year ago that he would not be seeking another term, following an allegation of sexual misconduct by a lobbyist.

The Republican primary election will take place August 23.

Carl Paladino statement on Twitter announcing candidacy for 23rd Congressional District

Buffalo businessman and one-time candidate for governor, Carl Paladino, has entered the race for the 23rd Congressional District.

The Republican announced on Twitter that he has enough petitions to qualify for the Republican and Conservative lines in addition to having $500,000 cash on hand for the campaign.

Paladino announced on Friday he’d run if Congressman Chris Jacobs stepped down from the race. Jacobs abandoned his re-election campaign after expressing support for a federal assault weapons ban, which received intense backlash from GOP leaders.

Governor Kathy Hochul officially declared that special elections to fill the vacancies in the 19th and 23rd Congressional Districts will be held on Tuesday, August 23. The special elections will fill the vacancies created by the resignations of Antonio Delgado, who is now the state’s Lieutenant Governor; and Tom Reed.

A primary will be held the same day for the 23rd District. Other Republicans had previously announced they planned to run in the new district including State Republican Party Chair Nick Langworthy.

Democrat Max Della Pia will be that party’s candidate in the special election and in the general election should no other Democrat step forward to force a primary.

The deadline to file petitions to run in the special election is Friday, June 10.

Tom Reed (left) and Donald Trump

WASHINGTON – Last week Chautauqua County’s representative in Washington became one of the first members of Congress to endorse Donald Trump for president.

On Monday, Congressman Tom Reed (R-Corning, NY 23) was able to meet with the billionaire presidential candidate as part of an effort to show party unity with the GOP front runner.

“It was a positive meeting. It was a meeting amongst folks here in Washington, DC to see how best we are going to move forward in developing that positive message for America’s future,” Reed said. “So it was a great start in developing and continuing the relationship with Donald Trump. As we go forward we’re going to use our influence to make sure that we’re focusing the campaign as best as possible on what is most important to the American people, and that is creating the jobs of today and tomorrow and getting this country going in the right direction.”

Reed said he also had the opportunity to share his thoughts with Trump on what to focus on during the campaign, and that is issues that he feels would most affect the day-to-day lives of Americans.

“The most critical thing we can being doing is focusing on the problems that impact Americans day to day. That’s on jobs. That’s making sure the rhetoric focuses on the big problems we face as America and hopefully that message is delivered. I think it has been and it will be,” Reed said.

Trump has been criticized because of the rhetoric and tone he uses in many of his campaign rallies, which some say incite violence toward those who protest his campaign rallies. He’s also called for the increased use of torture against suspected terrorists, while also saying the that not only should terrorists be targeted in military campaigns, but their families should also be targeted.

Reed said he’s already spoken out against that, but at the same time acknowledges that much of Trump’s appeal is the way he shares his message.

“That’s been a constant concern that many people share, including myself,” Reed said. “As we had indicated in our announcement last week, so making sure that the recognition of that rhetoric is something that I think is a legitimate issue to be raised with Donald Trump. But at the same time, it’s taping in to a plain talk, a non-politician’s way of looking at things and making sure that you’re speaking the language of the people. I think that’s what Donald Trump is tapping into and has ability to communicate through. My hope and my efforts are going to be to make sure that this national debate that Donald Trump and others are going to be involved in stays focused on the top issues facing America.”

Reed added that he feels the issues that are most important are job creation, national security, and getting the country’s fiscal house in order.

The Corning Republican also said that political threats from Carl Paladino, the conservative Buffalo developer and former gubernatorial candidate, did not influence his decision to endorse Trump.

In response to Reed’s endorsement of Trump, candidate John Plumb – Reed’s likely Democratic opponent in the November Election – said “it’s clear Tom Reed fully supports Donald Trump and his reckless rhetoric that makes our country less safe” and that “Trump’s dangerous rhetoric promoting torture and threatening civilians weakens our standing and puts our military at risk.”

Tom Reed (left) and Donald Trump

CORNING, NY – Chautauqua county’s representative in Washington is throwing his support against Donald Trump in the presidential race.

The Buffalo News is reporting that Corning Republican Tom Reed last week became the second House member from New York State to back Donald Trump for the Republican presidential nomination.

The news has prompted some Western New York Democrats to say Reed was merely reacting to a threat from Buffalo developer Carl Paladino, who said he would attack federal lawmakers who don’t endorse the GOP front-runner.

According the article, the media coordinator at Tom Reed for Congress sent out a brief, two-paragraph statement announcing his support. In it Reed said that it’s becoming clear that more Republicans favor Donald Trump more than any other candidate and the country cannot have someone in the White House that will continue the failed foreign policy and economic agenda of Barack Obama. As a result, Reed said now is the time to unite behind Trump, who he believes will be the eventual GOP nominee.

Congressman Reed is expected to hold his weekly media conference call on Monday and we should have more on his endorsement of Trump during our Tuesday morning news update.

“I have a lot of things to accomplish before it becomes election season for me in Chautauqua County, so right now my focus is to accomplish those things that need to happen,” Edwards said.

“We’ve got a lot of great things happening in Chautauqua County and my focus has been and will continue to be on economic opportunities for people. We’re doing a great job there. Our job numbers have been very solid and I’m invested in finding better ways for people to get more education, more specific training, so they can actually be out there and be productive for themselves and their families. I will honestly try and hold off this debate on ‘yes’ or ‘no’ as long as I can because that deters me from my primary purpose of serving.”

Edwards was first elected to the position of County Executive in 2005, defeating two-term incumbent Mark Thomas. At the time, it was the first public office he ever ran for. He won reelection in 2009, defeating Democratic Challenger Chuck Cornell.  In 2010, he was the candidate for Lt. Governor, running with Republican Gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino from Buffalo, although they lost the election to Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Lt. Gov. Bob Duffy.

Edwards said that at this time, he has no intention of seeking the republican nomination for governor in 2014.