Former Rep. Lee Zeldin on Monday did not rule out challenging Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand next year in New York, saying, “They know it would be a pretty epic clash if I decided to do it.” Zeldin in that same appearance also didn’t dismiss the idea he could compete in this fall’s race for Suffolk County executive, though the 2022 nominee for governor notably wasn’t one of the Republicans who appeared before local GOP and Conservative Party leaders as they seek to settle on a candidate.
Zeldin also said that he was forming a new federal PAC that would not employ longtime campaign treasurer Nancy Marks, who had the same resume-killing position with George Santos. “The treasurer has something like close to 200 different accounts” Zeldin dismissively said of Marks, who served as his treasurer since he successfully ran for the state Senate in 2008.
One of those bids was Zeldin’s final congressional race in 2020 where the campaign, in true Santos style, submitted 21 payments on one day for $199.99 each: The FEC requires campaigns to provide recipes for expenses that are $200 or more, and Zeldin’s former campaign manager says that he believes all of those 2020 expenses had been “batched together for accounting purposes.” Zeldin himself noted that Marks and his own children attend school together but said little else beyond, “Our interaction has been through Marks’ daughters.”
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We're chatting with one of our favorite fellow election analysts on this week's episode of The Downballot, Kyle Kondik of Sabato's Crystal Ball. Kyle helped call races last year for CBS and gives us a rare window inside a TV network's election night decision desk, which literally has a big button to call control of the House—that no one got to press. Kyle also dives into his new race ratings for the 2024 Senate map, including why he thinks Joe Manchin's unlikely tight-rope act might finally come to an end.
In their Weekly Hits, co-hosts David Nir and David Beard recap big developments in two Senate contests: Rep. Adam Schiff's entry into the race to succeed Dianne Feinstein, and the GOP's unexpected show of unity in the open-seat election in Indiana. They also dissect the first poll of this year's hotly contested race for governor in Kentucky and highlight another 2023 battle that shouldn't get overlooked: the race for a vacant seat on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.