- Ex-Rep. Steve Israel lauded the approach that Tom Suozzi took in fighting off immigration attacks.
- “Instead of trying to pivot around the issue, he charged into it,” Israel told The New York Times.
- Suozzi defeated Republican Mazi Melesa Pilip in New York’s pivotal 3rd district special election.
An ex-Long Island congressman in a recent interview said that Democrat Tom Suozzi successfully countered GOP attacks on immigration in the New York 3rd Congressional district special election by “doubling down” on the issue.
Former Democratic Rep. Steve Israel, who previously represented the 3rd district, told The New York Times that despite the best efforts of Republicans to make border security a political anchor for Democrats, Suozzi was able to break through and defeat Republican Mazi Melesa Pilip with an approach that he said was a roadmap for his party on the contentious issue.
Suozzi confronted the immigration issue — a top concern of voters in the Long Island and Queens-anchored district — while also challenging Republicans on public safety and fiscal matters. And the former congressman also rallied Democrats on issues like abortion rights, which has stirred up the party’s base since the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022.
“It’s a very interesting lesson to Democrats that you can escape your opponent’s attacks on immigration by not only leaning into the issue, but doubling down on it,” Israel told The Times.
“Instead of trying to pivot around the issue, he charged into it,” he added.
The Times noted that Suozzi during a recent morning drive found out that Pilip was holding a press conference in Queens where she was berating him over the border crisis. Suozzi shifted gears, went to the site in Queens, and spoke to the media following Pilip’s address, in a move that was widely seen as politically savvy.
Suozzi, a former Glen Cove mayor and one-time Nassau County executive, held the 3rd district seat from 2017 — when he succeeded Israel — until 2023. The seat opened up again after former GOP Rep. George Santos, who won the district by 8 points in 2022, was expelled from Congress after a string of high-profile controversies, including the 23 criminal charges that he currently faces.
