Race for 23rd Congressional District too close to call

With 100 percent of election districts reporting on June 26, Democratic Congressional candidate Max Della Pia, of Owego, had a narrow victory in a crowded Democratic Primary field in New York’s 23rd District. As the results arrived late on Tuesday, Della Pia was leading by 26 votes over Democratic primary candidate, Tracy Mitrano, and according to board of election results at https://nyenr.elections.ny.gov.

However, it wasn’t over at the time of this reporting. Absentee ballots remain to be counted, and the winner of the Democratic primary won’t be known until all the ballots are counted. Absentee Ballots must be received by July 3 and postmarked by June 25.

However, Della Pia’s campaign sees it as a victory, and in a press release received on Wednesday morning, his campaign welcomed the results of Tuesday’s primary election.

“I set out to run for Congress with one goal, to amplify the voices of the people of New York’s 23rd District,” Della Pia stated in the release.

Running in the Democrat Primary on Tuesday were candidates Della Pia, Ian Golden, Edward Sunquist, Tracy Mitrano and Linda Andrei.

Della Pia, who lives in Owego, N.Y., would take on incumbent Republican congressman Tom Reed on Nov. 6, 2018, if declared a winner after the absentee ballots are counted.

Reed is running for his 4th term in office. 

Democratic Congressional candidate Max Della Pia opened an office in Owego earlier this year, as well as two other offices in Ithaca and Jamestown.

Della Pia, a retired Colonel in the Air Force, received a brevet promotion to Brigadier General for his distinguished service in addition to a Bronze Star and Legion of Merit. 

Apart from a career in the Armed Forces, Della Pia has worked in the private sector as an attorney, and in business development for Lockheed Martin.

Regarding the other democratic candidates, Della Pia added, “It was a privilege to run alongside such a distinguished and passionate group of individuals.”

In a statement by Tom Reed’s campaign office following Tuesday’s primary election results, Nicholas Weinstein, campaign manager for Tom Reed for Congress, stated, “It’s no surprise that with a field of Extreme Ithaca Liberal options to choose from, the Democrats couldn’t make a definitive selection in their Primary on Tuesday.” 

The campaign added, “With their unanimous support for higher taxes, heroin injection sites in our neighborhoods and government-run socialized medicine, these Extreme Ithaca Liberals have clearly demonstrated to the voters that they are out of touch with our values in the Southern Tier, Finger Lakes and Western New York. We look forward to continuing to highlight how extreme and out of touch they are as they sort through the absentee ballots.”

Della Pia’s campaign added to this, “We look forward to having the results certified by the Board of Elections, and are excited to have every voice heard.”