Hochul Halts Bill Aimed at Weakening Republican Control of House
Democrats, though, insisted the effort was not dead.
“House Republicans were wiped out in New York last year, losing four seats even while Donald Trump was winning the presidency,” said Andy Eichar, a spokesman for Mr. Jeffries.
He added: “Instead of whining about a good government election law change that remains under consideration by the Legislature, why don’t they do something about Elon Musk stealing the bank account information and Social Security numbers of the people they claim to represent?”
Ms. Stefanik’s district is one of the largest in the state, running from north of Albany to the Canadian border, and has been considered safely Republican in recent years. But Democrats plan to try to compete for it.
Even as they debated stalling the election, Democrats wasted no time coalescing behind a candidate to replace Ms. Stefanik. Last week, party leaders in the 15 counties that make up the district unanimously endorsed Blake Gendebien, a dairy farmer from near St. Lawrence County along the Canadian border, as their nominee.
Republicans, including aides to Mr. Trump and Ms. Stefanik, are still vetting their potential nominee. The finalists include Liz Joy, who ran twice unsuccessfully for a neighboring House district; Chris Tague, a state assemblyman who was himself formerly a dairy farmer; and Daniel G. Stec, a state senator and Navy veteran.
“There is no way that any Democrat beats me in the North Country,” Mr. Stec said.
“If anything, holding this special on the same day as a general election, with the higher turnout, more likely it will be a larger victory for Republicans,” Mr. Stec added.
