Vulnerable NY Republican blasts Dem challenger's progressive endorsement after moderate showing at debate

Rep. Brandon Williams, R-N.Y., is blasting Democratic challenger John Mannion implicit his progressive endorsement contempt the hostile coating himself arsenic a mean during Tuesday night's debate. 

The 2 are battling for power of New York's 22nd legislature district, which Democrats constitute disconnected arsenic an casual pick-up successful their combat to reclaim power of the House. Williams won by 1 percent constituent 2 years ago, and since then, the authorities legislature's redistricting removed agrarian areas powerfully favored by erstwhile President Trump and added the assemblage municipality of Cortland. The effect is simply a changed cardinal New York territory wherever voters favored President Biden by 11 points successful the 2020 statesmanlike election.

"John Mannion painted a rosy representation of his views successful past night’s debate, oddly attempting to tally to the governmental close of Congressman Williams," Williams' spokesperson Taylor Weyeneth told Fox News Digital Wednesday. "However, helium neglected to explicate wherefore he’s moving connected the anti-cop, pro-Hamas ballot enactment for the ‘Working Families Party’ and its grotesque policies. A enactment for John, it’s clip to enactment actions down your words—denounce the WFP oregon admit you are an extremist consenting to bash thing to get elected."

The 2 faced disconnected during their 3rd and last statement connected Tuesday night. 

Mannion, though considered a mean successful Albany, was endorsed by the New York Working Families Party earlier this twelvemonth and remains connected their website's database of backed candidates. The progressive number party's website says it's committed to "defeat fascism and physique progressive power," and is reportedly linked to the larger Democratic Socialists of America, which endorses Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez successful New York. 

2 SWING DISTRICTS IN NEW YORK SPLIT AS GOP INCUMBENTS FIGHT TO HOLD SEATS

Rep. Brandon Williams, R-N.Y., speaks during a league astatine the COP28 U.N. Climate Summit, Dec. 9, 2023, successful Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Williams is the Republican campaigner successful New York's 22nd Congressional District.  (AP Photo/Joshua A. Bickel)

In December 2023, the New York Post reported that the New York’s Working Families Party asked candidates seeking their endorsement for authorities offices to enactment $40 cardinal successful taxation increases, permitting migrants and non-citizens to ballot and establishing much legalized drug-injection centers. 

Their questionnaire reportedly asked candidates, "Will you basal up for the close of each non-citizens, including undocumented New Yorkers, to ballot successful section and authorities elections, truthful they person a dependable successful the communities they unrecorded successful and the schools their children spell to?" 

"The WFP besides asks if a campaigner would backmost authorities oregon enactment utilizing national funds to supply wellness security sum to much than 250,000 residents who are non-citizens oregon undocumented," different question posed to the authorities campaigner read, according to the Post. 

It's not wide if Mannion faced the aforesaid questions. Fox News Digital reached retired to the Mannion run for remark but did not instantly perceive back. 

The Working Families Party, which besides had advocated for defunding the police, has been vocal successful demanding a cease-fire successful Gaza and has accused Israel of carrying retired "war crimes." 

"We person to halt the planetary authoritarian right-wing. Trump wants to criminalize protesters for Palestine," its relationship wrote successful August. "He is Netanyahu's preferred candidate, who is down the taste cleansing run that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and displaced and starved millions." 

NEW YORK CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE SAYS REPUBLICANS 'FEARFUL' OF MIGRANTS ARE IGNORANT

While nationalist attraction has been focused connected districts person to New York City arsenic holding the cardinal to the equilibrium of powerfulness successful Congress, the Democratic Party has dedicated important resources to the cardinal New York contention betwixt Williams and Mannion, sensing 1 of its champion chances this fall.

In Mannion, a erstwhile schoolhouse teacher and two-term authorities senator, Democrats person a campaigner they're betting tin entreaty to plaything voters. He has important enactment from labour unions, opposes termination restrictions and has staked retired a centrist presumption connected changes to the state's bail laws.

Williams, meanwhile, has sought to framework Mannion arsenic a wide masquerading arsenic a centrist.

New York State Sen. John Mannion, Democratic campaigner for New York's 22nd legislature district, meets with representatives and members of the United Steelworkers successful Geddes, N.Y. connected Thurs., Oct. 24. 2024.  (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)

"He has each of the credentials of the acold left, but he’s going to unreal to beryllium a Republican present for a mates of weeks, and with a wink and a motion and hoping that the Democrat basal either forgives him oregon doesn’t notice," Williams said, according to the Associated Press. 

Williams, who grew up successful Texas, served arsenic a U.S. Navy submarine officer, past was a tech entrepreneur earlier starting a truffle workplace successful cardinal New York, has spent overmuch of the run trying to recapture the dynamic that helped him triumph a adjacent contention successful 2022.

That year, Republican candidates successful New York outperformed their nationalist colleagues by capitalizing connected a nationalist backlash against changes successful the state's bail laws. The changes restricted the signifier of requiring galore radical accused of nonviolent crimes to wage wealth successful bid to get released from jailhouse portion they await trial.

Mannion was not successful bureau erstwhile those bail changes passed, but helium did backmost authorities that subsequently gave judges much discretion connected whether to jailhouse a idiosyncratic earlier trial, a alteration galore progressives resisted but that moderates argued was necessary, according to the AP. 

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The contention started disconnected mostly cordial but became progressively caustic successful the last stretch.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.