Mondaire Jones — the Spring Valley native and the Democrats’ best shot at flipping the 17th District — will not only have to beat incumbent Republican Rep. Mike Lawler come November but will also face a Working Families Party candidate who, strangely, the party itself has denounced and is not supporting.
For those unfamiliar with the political group, the Working Families Party traditionally supports Democratic candidates and progressive legislation. But it appears Lawler and his Republicans outmaneuvered Democrats in acquiring the WFP ballot line to siphon votes from Jones in an election that will undoubtedly be decided by the thinnest of margins.
Aside from the local implications, the 17th District race for the seat representing Rockland and Putnam counties, as well as most of Northern Westchester and parts of southern Dutchess is one of a handful that could determine the balance of power in the House of Representatives.
But a “mystery” candidate named Anthony Frascone (who hasn’t given interviews and doesn’t have a website) is running on the WFP line, presumably to confuse left-leaning Democratic voters and clear the path for Lawler.
The roots of this infighting has its roots in the district next door, where Westchester County Executive George Latimer, a moderate Democrat, challenged Jamal Bowman, making the Democratic primary for the 16th district the most expensive House primary race in history.
Jones and Bowman had been allies (after redistricting, Jones ran unsuccessfully in New York City rather than challenge Bowman, another Black progressive, in what used to be his district).
But Jones lost support from some influential left-leaning groups after he endorsed Latimer and withdrew support from Bowman, saying he could not sit by ”while his former ally “positioned himself as a leading critic of Israel.” Most notably, Jones criticized Bowman’s dismissal of Hamas’ sexual assault of Israeli women on Oct. 7.
Jones not only withdrew his support, he threw it behind Latimer.
In response to Jones ditching Bowman for his opponent, The Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC rescinded its endorsement of Jones, and The Working Families Party of New York withdrew financial and organizational support.
“His decision to back George Latimer, who uses racist dog whistles, rejects core parts of [President] Biden’s economic agenda, and shares donors with Mondaire’s own MAGA extremist opponent, runs counter to our values as a party,” NYWFP’s co-directors said in a statement published in news reports.
GOP operatives connected to Lawler’s campaign smelled blood in the water.
Frascone, who according to news reports is a former legal client of Rockland County GOP chair Lawrence Garvey, has no history with the Working Families Party.
However, Working Families Party members can petition to become a party candidate without permission or direction from party leaders.
“It seems that Garvey went through his Rolodex to find somebody who would register as a Working Families Party member, run on our line and force a primary with the aim of splitting the vote, knowing that this is going to be a close race,” said Ravi Mangla, national press secretary for the Working Families Party.
Garvey and the Rockland County GOP did not respond to a request for comment.
“We did several rounds of mail, text banks, phone banks, and paid canvasing to try and win the primary and keep the WFP line out of Anthony Frascone’s hands,” Mangla said. “But the GOP reregistered what we believe are about 200 people as Working Families Party members to get them to vote in the primary and throw the election.”
Mangla said Lawler’s campaign even sent out mailers on behalf of Franscone to WFP voters and that there was “clearly some kind of collusion going on between the GOP and this candidate who is a mystery, a plant, and has not talked to press.”
Lawler’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
For Republicans, the district is a smart (if highly unethical) target for dirty tricks.
Lawler beat Democrat Sean Maloney, the former Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chair, by less than 1 percentage point during the 2022 midterms. And that was with Maloney running on both Working Families and Democratic party lines.
The breakdown suggests that this time around, too, Democrats are likely to need all the votes they can muster and to unify behind a single candidate.
“Our plan is not to uplift or support Anthony Frascone,” said Mangla. “We don’t want to see him win. We don’t want to play the spoiler in this race. So I just want to clarify that he is not our candidate,” Mangla said.
Prior to Franscone’s win on the WFP line, a spokesperson for Jones, Shannon Geison, told Nyack News and Views that: “Regardless, Mondaire Jones will win the general election against Mike Lawler, who repeatedly votes against access to abortion and Medicare and Social Security, and would be a reliable vote for Donald Trump’s dangerous agenda if reelected.”
Here’s to hoping it’s not just a bit too little, too late. If Franscone is able to throw the election — especially if the House hinges on just a few seats — the WFP will have a whole lot of explaining to do.
