Democratic voters in New York’s 3rd Congressional District will head to the polls June 23 to choose their party’s nominee for the U.S. House of Representatives, in a contest between incumbent Rep. Tom Suozzi and challenger Danielle Welch.
Suozzi, 63, is seeking another term representing the district. An attorney and certified public accountant, he served as mayor of Glen Cove and Nassau County executive before being elected to Congress for the first time in 2016. After he left Washington to run for governor in 2022, ultimately losing to incumbent Kathy Hochul, voters returned Suozzi to the House in a 2024 special election and again in the general election later that year.
Affordability, Suozzi said, remains one of the most pressing issues facing Long Island residents. “Everyone knows that we’re facing a cost-of-living crisis,” he told the Herald. “From health care to housing, energy to groceries, prices are sky-high. To make matters worse, New Yorkers bear one of the heaviest tax burdens in the country, which only adds to our cost of living.”
Suozzi said that one of his priorities in Congress is securing federal resources for the district. “One of my core missions in Congress is simple and direct: bring our money back home,” he said.
He also pointed to concerns about rising prices and federal policy decisions. “The sticker shock Americans are feeling at the gas pump, in the grocery store, opening their utility bills and paying for health care aren’t some abstract political talking points,” Suozzi said. “The high cost of living is a daily reality for many families trying to make it through the week.”
Welch, 35, of Bayside, Queens, is making her first bid for Congress. A first-generation college graduate and career public defender, she continues to work full time while raising a daughter with her husband.
Welch grew up in a military family in Virginia, and attended public schools before earning full-tuition merit scholarships to the University of Pittsburgh and New York University School of Law. During college and law school, she volunteered with community organizations and took on pro bono legal work.
After graduating, Welch entered public service rather than private practice, and has worked as a public defender since 2015.
According to her campaign website, she is running because she believes elected officials should prioritize working families and vulnerable residents.
“The choice in this election isn’t between the political left and the political right,” Welch states on the website. “This year we are choosing between what is morally right and morally wrong.”
She also says that her own experiences have shaped her campaign. “I am a first-generation college graduate, the mom of a young daughter, a proud union member, and a public defender,” her statement on the website reads. “I have personally experienced many of the challenges that working class people face, and I understand the urgency they demand.”
The primary is part of New York’s congressional election cycle ahead of the Nov. 3 general election. Candidates seeking a place on the ballot faced an April 6 filing deadline.
New York’s 3rd Congressional District spans northeastern Queens, the North Shore of Nassau County and portions of northwestern Suffolk County. According to the 2020 census, congressional districts in New York each represent an average of more than 777,000 residents. The 3rd district includes a mix of suburban, urban and coastal communities, and affordability, transportation, environmental protection and public services are recurring campaign issues.
