As Republicans look to defy history in the upcoming midterm elections, they hope to pick up seats in an unexpected place: New York.
One of the top New York House seats being targeted by the GOP is that of Rep. Laura Gillen, who represents large swaths of Long Island. The GOP is banking on Gillen’s leftist voting record and the unpopularity of Governor Kathy Hochul to open the door for them to get a win in the swing district.
Gillen, who won New York’s 4th Congressional District by ousting incumbent Republican Rep. Anthony D’Esposito by about 8,000 votes in 2024, has voted with her party to force the Department of War to use taxpayer dollars for transgender surgeries and wants to keep Haitian nationals from being deported.
“Out-of-touch radical Laura Gillen has repeatedly fought to send Long Islanders’ tax dollars down the drain,” National Republican Congressional Committee spokeswoman Maureen O’Toole told The Daily Wire. “Her record of pushing woke pet projects won’t fly in this district, and voters will send her packing in November because of it.”
Midterm elections historically favor the party out of the White House, and President Donald Trump is broadly unpopular in New York, but Republicans believe local trends may favor them in Gillen’s district. The district favored President Joe Biden by 15 points in 2020 but only went for Vice President Kamala Harris by one point in 2024. Last year, Republicans won all the top positions in Nassau County, where Gillen’s district is centered.
One of Gillen’s top priorities since entering Congress has been prohibiting the deportation of Haitian nationals living in the United States. She sponsored legislation opposed by the Trump administration that would expand Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Haitians until 2029.
“The president has made it clear that this administration’s priority is protecting the American people and addressing the criminal threat posed by those who enter this nation with little to no vetting or overstay the visa granted them,” the White House said in a policy statement explaining its opposition. “Numerous Haitian nationals previously granted TPS have been the subject of administrative investigations for fraud, public safety, and national security.”
In one recent social media post, Gillen claimed that ending TPS for Haitians would burden the “healthcare system by forcing them to fire caregivers.”
Gillen voted against an amendment to keep the military’s TRICARE health coverage from being used to fund transgender procedures on gender-confused members. Additionally, she opposed $9 billion in foreign aid cuts to programs pushing LGBT and climate activism around the globe.
The New York Democrat is a member of the Congressional Equality Caucus, which backs a bill pushing federal funding for transgender procedures and opposes efforts to keep drag shows off of military facilities.
Running against Gillen is Republican Jeanine Driscoll, who is focusing on a platform of cutting taxes, backing law enforcement, and securing the southern border. Driscoll was an official in Hempstead Town, where she oversaw local taxes.
In recent years, Republicans have performed well in the district. Long Beach, a city of about 35,000, elected all Republicans to the city council in November 2025 for the first time in over half a century. Republican Bruce Blakeman coasted to re-election as Nassau County Executive in 2025 by over 10 points. Now running for governor, one recent poll showed Blakeman down just 10 points to Hochul, who once led by 20 points.
The same poll showed Republicans with a 49% to 44% lead over Democrats on the generic Congressional ballot in the suburbs.
“In New York, Republicans are in the strongest electoral position possible, because while Kathy Hochul and Zohran Mamdani run the Empire State into the ground, Republicans are delivering,” O’Toole said. “Taxes are down, communities are safer, and New Yorkers have President Trump and Republicans to thank for it.”
