As we head into the November elections, Donald Trump’s numbers continue to plunge, and New York Republicans in the U.S. House are sweating. One of them is Nick LaLota, a MAGA Republican who has been all in for Trump. He’s the congressman in New York’s first congressional district, in Suffolk County on Eastern Long Island.
And he will face Chris Gallant, who won the Democratic primary last month and is gearing up for the battle in November. A poll from earlier in the year had Gallant within three points of LaLota—and that was before Gallant won the primary in June.
Gallant joined the New York Army National Guard at 17 and deployed several times to Kuwait. He’s been a union leader and a volunteer firefighter, serving his community for years.
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Gallant is also gay—he and his fiancé both serve in the military—and has been vocal on civil rights for LGBTQ people at a time when the GOP has been passing horrendous bills. LaLota likes to speak as a moderate Republican on queer issues, but his scorecard with the Human Rights Campaign is typically zero, and he’s voted to strip LGBTQ people of healthcare funding.
He also opposed New York’s Proposition 1, a ballot measure that passed in 2024 and enshrined abortion rights, LGBTQ rights, and other rights in the state constitution. LaLota sided with the “Coalition to Protect Kids,” specifically targeting transgender people.
Gallant spoke with me on my SiriusXM program about his campaign, the issues facing folks in his district, and why he believes he can beat LaLota. You can check out his campaign here.
