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Yup, it is time for another edition of Taking Back The House. I have made some casual tweaks to the system and instead of just listing all the editions here, I have one big recap of all the seats we have highlighted thus far.
So, if you are curious about updates on some of the major races; please click here.
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After a minor (planned) hiatus in our series and with the summer about to start revving up, its time to revive our Taking Back The House series! This is already our ninth chapter (for previous installments and updates towards them, click on the links above) and we are approaching what I believe is one of our more winnable seats. Outside of seats held by Gary Miller, Mike Coffman and Steve Southerland; this might be one of our best gets.
The incumbent in this district is uncontroversial but is entering his third term representing the great state of New York’s 19th congressional district. Without further introductions, please meet Rep. Chris Gibson.
Chris Gibson has been serving in the House since beating then-incumbent Rep. Scott Murphy with about 55% of the vote. Gibson is a veteran who received numerous military decorations for his service in the United States Army. Gibson’s pet issue appears to be national security as a result of his time in the military.
Legislation & Notable Votes:
- Didn’t seem sure on Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell
- Voted for Paul Ryan’s budget in 2011, against in 2012
- Against same-sex marriage
- Voted to repeal the Affordable Care Act
Headlines:
- Named the “most liberal Republican” in the House (or least conservative, your pick)
Electoral History:
2010: Chris Gibson (R): 54.9%, Rep. Scott Murphy (D): 45.1%
2012: Gibson (R): 49%, Julian Schreibman (D): 43.7, Blank: 7.4%
PVI:
D+1
Potential Prospects:
We got a big get in this district in 26-year old activist, Sean Eldridge. Eldridge, who is openly gay and married to Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes, is also a prominent Democratic fundraiser who will surely be able to raise quite a bit of money in the coming weeks.
Eldridge is a member of Freedom to Marry which aims to make same sex marriage legal in all 50 states and is also a campaign reform activist, which is odd considering he is a big donor as well.
Why We Can Win This:
Eldridge is a good get and he should be able to raise money and with his passion for the environment, as well as his work as an activist for marriage equality, he would make a fairly good Representative.
That being said, Gibson appears to be locally popular and should be easy to play up the “bipartisan” card as Eldridge appears to be more in the vein of a staunch progressive, which is a good thing for us, but not great for winning swing districts. The district is pretty purple though, so anything goes!
Links You Oughta Check Out:
Sean Eldridge’s Twitter
Sean Eldridge’s Facebook
Sean Eldridge’s ActBlue Page
DONATE TO SEAN ELDRIDGE’S CAMPAIGN