Update: John Mannion wins Democratic primary election for Congress: ‘It takes positivity’ (2024)

Syracuse, N.Y. – John Mannion easily held off Sarah Klee Hood to register a convincing win in the Democratic primary election Tuesday for the 22nd Congressional District seat in Central New York.

The results set up a November election between Mannion and first-term Republican Rep. Brandon Williams in what will be one of the most closely watched House races in the nation.

Mannion addressed his supporters at Emerald co*cktail Kitchen in Syracuse at about 10:45 p.m. A crowd of about 100 supporters began chanting, “Mannion! Mannion! Mannion!” as he entered the rooftop deck to declare victory.

“If you believe in running a positive campaign, this is the campaign for you,” Mannion said to loud cheers. “If you believe in respect and integrity and dignity, then you are on the Mannion team!”

“The people of Central New York and the Mohawk Valley are a part of the American team,” Mannion said while surrounded by his family. “They saw that it takes integrity. It takes positivity. It takes delivering for Central New York.”

The enthusiastic crowd roared and chanted, “Mannion! Mannion! Mannion! Mannion!”

Klee Hood addressed her supporters at Munjed’s Middle Eastern & Greek Restaurant in Syracuse and acknowledged she had lost the election.

“I’m deeply honored and grateful for the trust and support of the community around NY-22,” she said. “While we didn’t secure victory, the journey has been a testament of our hard work, dedication and commitment to organizing and our shared values around Central New York.”

Klee Hood said she’d support Mannion, who she called before conceding.

“It’s imperative that we’re all in this big blue tent in the Democratic party,” Klee Hood added. “If we truly want to see change, we have to make sure we rally to beat Brandon Williams.”

Asked about her future, Klee Hood said she’ll focus on DeWitt, where she is a town councilor.

“I’ll be here to ensure there are other women interested in running for political office, that they don’t take their first no and walk away,” she said.

Mannion led Klee Hood 62-38% with nearly all of the vote counted in the five-county district, according to unofficial returns from the state Board of Elections.

Mannion coasted to victory by running up his vote total in Onondaga County, where he was winning with 70% of the vote, according to unofficial returns.

Klee Hood beat Mannion by 1,865 in Oneida and Madison counties, but that was no match for the 7,500-vote lead Mannion ran up in Onondaga County.

Mannion jumped out to a sizeable early lead over Klee Hood and never looked back. Mannion led 70-30% as early voting and absentee ballots were tabulated first.

Shortly before 10 p.m., Gov. Kathy Hochul had seen enough. She called Mannion to congratulate him on his victory before the race had been called in his favor.

Williams, the incumbent, wasted no time going on the attack against Mannion.

“John Mannion is an Albany-insider who has spent his political career siding with far-left radicals, and Central New Yorkers have felt the impact at the pump, in the grocery store, and on their utility bills,” said a statement on Williams’ X account.

Mannion, a state senator from Geddes, and Klee Hood, a DeWitt town councilor, had battled for almost a full year to win over Democratic voters.

The two candidates agreed on most issues important to Democratic voters but spent considerable time emphasizing why they believe they offer Democrats a better shot at unseating Williams.

Political analysts in Washington rank Williams among the 10 most vulnerable Republicans in the House of Representatives.

Democrats view the 22nd Congressional District seat as a must-win priority to gain the four seats the party needs to win back the House majority.

Mannion, 56, had the momentum coming into the primary election. He won the backing of about 30 labor unions, Democratic committees in Onondaga and Cayuga counties, and dozens of elected Democrats in Central New York and Albany.

He also secured a second ballot spot on the Working Families Party line.

Klee Hood, 41, an Air Force veteran, was making her second consecutive Democratic primary bid for the 22nd Congressional District seat.

In 2022, she came close to upsetting the party-backed candidate, Francis Conole, of Syracuse.

Conole won a four-way race by about 4 percentage points over Klee Hood, (10,971 votes to 9,790 votes) followed by former state Assemblyman Sam Roberts (3,662) and Syracuse Common Councilor Chol Majok (3,315).

All told, 27,862 votes were cast in the 2022 Democratic primary.

This time, Klee Hood became the first candidate to announce her candidacy and had more success raining money for her campaign. She raised about $1.4 million, topping Mannion’s $869,000.

In the final weeks of the campaign, Mannion got a big boost from the nation’s two largest teachers union. The National Education Association and American Federation of Teachers spent a little more than $300,000 combined on ads independent of his campaign.

Klee Hood benefited from when a group called Pro Choice Majority 2024 spent about $55,000 independent of her campaign on digital ads in the final weeks before the election.

In their closing arguments to voters at three public debates, Mannion told voters that he was battle-tested with a proven record as a candidate and lawmaker.

Mannion won two close elections against Republicans for the state Senate. He said he’s the only one of 42 Democratic senators in New York who represents a majority Republican district.

Klee Hood told voters that Williams would be more vulnerable in an election against a woman and military veteran with no ties to Albany. She talked about her experience accessing abortion services and said a woman would be best qualified to take on Williams, who opposes abortion rights.

In a syracuse.com debate two weeks before the election, Klee Hood summed up her qualifications this way: “I am a short, feisty, energetic, overqualified woman. I excite voters.”

The 22nd District spans all of Onondaga and Madison counties, and parts of Cayuga, Cortland and Oneida counties. State lawmakers approved new district lines in February.

President Joe Biden won the new district by 11.6 percentage points in the 2020 presidential election. Biden won the old district by 7.6 percentage points.

The new district has about 31,000 more registered Democrats than Republicans.

Even before Tuesday’s election, political analysts in Washington said the winner of the Democratic primary would be slightly favored to defeat Williams in November.

Reporter Fernando Alba contributed to this report.

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