Mike Lawler leads Pelosi pal DCCC chair Sean Patrick Maloney: poll
October 14, 2022
By Carl Campanile
Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney, a top ally of Speaker Nancy Pelosi who oversees the House Democrats’ campaign fundraising arm, is on the ropes in his re-election bid, a new poll released by his rival Friday claims.
Republican candidate Assemblyman Michael Lawler’s campaign released an internal poll claiming he leads Maloney 52% to 46% in the district covering the lower Hudson Valley.
“Voters in New York’s 17th Congressional District remain frustrated with the current state of the country, specifically regarding inflation, the economy and crime,” said pollster Jim McLaughlin.
“Maloney and his extreme views on issues such as cashless bail, taxes, spending, inflation and ethics are being exposed and this is making Maloney very unpopular with voters.”
The Lawler-commissioned survey says headwinds favor the GOP in the district: 72% of likely voters say the U.S. is on the wrong track, 56% disapprove of President Biden’s job performance, while Republican Rep. Lee Zeldin leads Democratic incumbent Gov. Kathy Hochul in the governor’s race in the 17th CD 52% to 44%.
“Lawler can release as many skewed internal polls as he likes, but it won’t change the reality that he is losing because his extremist MAGA agenda of banning abortion, opposing gun safety reforms, and engaging in disgusting, anti-Semitic attacks isn’t welcome in the Hudson Valley,” said Maloney campaign spokeswoman Mia Ehrenberg.
The Maloney campaign dismissed the findings.
Lawyer’s campaign claims his lead over Maloney in internal polling jumped from 2 points in July to 6 points now.
But the independent Cook Political report gives Maloney the edge in the race, rating the contest as leaning Democrat.
The contest is one of about a half dozen competitive races in New York that could determine whether Republicans regain control of the House of Representatives from the Democrats.
Maloney, the chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, was first elected in 2012, and is running for a sixth term.
Lawler, a former executive director of the state Republican Party, was first elected to the state Assembly in 2020 representing Rockland County.
The GOP internal poll of 400 likely general election voters in CD 17 was conducted from
October 10-12 and has a margin of error of plus or 4.9 percentage points.
The sample includes a mix of 33% landline phone, 34% mobile phone, and 33% text-to-web interviews.
