Moderates in the News: New York’s 23rd District Special Congressional Election

Well, the 2009 election season is over. There are always two characteristics which are bound to define the elections taking place in the year following a presidential election. First, people don't care near as much about these elections. Media attention is much lower, and most people are still three years away from being ready to get excited about politics again. Second, people are bound to view these elections as sort of opinion poll of the president's first year in office. I always thought this was somewhat unfair to the actual credentials of the candidates themselves, but this seems to be the standard drill. What can you do?

While this year was no exception, there was one interesting race which caught particular media attention and which, according to the news reports, had the word “Moderate” all over it. I am referring to the special off-year congressional election took place in New York's 23rd district. The majority of this particular district, I was surprised to learn, had been represented by only Republicans since before the Civil War. Considering how much parties have changed back and forth since that time, this consistency is remarkable. Their previous congressman, a moderate Republican named John McHugh, had been appointed by President Obama to serve as Secretary of the Army. Per the terms of the New York state constitution, a special election was held to fill the vacant seat.

While this district had indeed been considered a Republican stronghold, New York Republicans are typically not your run-of-the mill super-conservative type of Republican that many like to use for stereotyping purposes. Like most places in America, New York is full of Moderates. Therefore the county party chairmen, recognizing the spectrum of voters in their district, put forth a trusted moderate candidate, Dede Scozzafava, in order to continue holding the longtime Republican seat.

Shortly after her nomination as the Republican candidate, Scozzafava began to experience significant backlash from Extremists who identify with the Republican party. A third party candidate, Doug Hoffman, emerged in the race, representing the “Conservative Party of New York.” This party is often seen as conservative counter-weight to the more moderate Republicans in New York. The race gained significantly more media attention as a well-known Republican celebrity, former Governor of Alaska and former Vice-Presidential candidate Sarah Palin, showed up in New York to make a surprise endorsement of Hoffman, rather than Scozzafava. Several other prominent Republicans followed suit, though others continued to support their own party's candidate or remained aloof.

Now, unlike some, I don't view breaking ranks with one's party as a political crime. Indeed, putting policy priorities ahead of party loyalties is one of the characteristics of a Moderate. However, in this case, I am disheartened by the actions of Republicans who made a move to push Scozzafava aside. Bascially, their decision was made in an attempt to “get the Moderates out of the party,” rather than representing moderate values themselves. The entire ordeal again highlighted the continuing philosophical debate among Republicans of whether Moderates would be welcomed into their ranks, or whether the Republican Party should be an “Extremists Only” establishment.

In the end, after polling third in pre-election surveys, Ms. Scozzafava withdrew from the race a week before election day, and threw her support behind Bill Owens, the Democratic candidate. Owens would go on to win the race, and the Republicans lost the congressional district that they had represented for over 150 years.

The moral of the story is this. Don't throw the Moderates under the bus. While I am not affiliated with the Republican Party, I would like to see both major parties be more open to Moderates, as such individuals represent a majority of Americans. I thought it was best expressed by Former Republican Presidential hopeful Mitt Romney, who said the following, when questioned why he had not supported Hoffman as many other Republicans were doing. “...you don't build something by subtraction. So we welcome people who agree with us on most issues. Some will be very conservative on some issues. Some will be less so on others. We welcome you into the party.”

I wish the Republicans the best of luck as they continue to define their party. I truly hope they will take the more inclusive approach, embracing moderate Republicans, rather than excluding them. Only time will tell how this saga will play out.