Tipsheet

Sean Patrick Maloney Concedes, Becoming First DCCC Chair to Lose General Election Since 1980

Rebecca Downs
Rebecca Downs  |  November 09, 2022 11:30 AM

On Wednesday morning, Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D-NY) conceded to his Republican opponent, Mike Lawler. Maloney also served as the chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC). With his loss, he becomes the first DCCC chairman to lose the general election since Jim Corman lost in 1980. 

While several races are still being called in the House and Senate, it's clear that Republicans performed well below expectations. This makes the loss for a DCCC chairman even more stunning, should it turn out that his party indeed holds control of the House. 

The Congressional Leadership Institute (CLF) also released a statement on Wednesday from their president, Dan Conston. "Congratulations to Mike Lawler for pulling off one of the biggest upsets of the cycle," he said. "Democrats thought we were bluffing, but we knew all along that Mike had what it took to win. Sean Patrick Maloney’s hubris got the best of him and we are proud to have played a decisive role in this victory."

When it comes to that mention of "bluffing," Conston isn't kidding. When CLF announced in April that they would be spending money win the race, Maloney accused the group of "lighting money on fire" and confidently claimed that the DCCC wouldn't need top spend money saving him. The DCCC did, in fact, spend money to do so, and it does not appear to have paid off. 

According to a press release from CLF, they spent $8.2 million on this seat.

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Hubris, as Conston's statement mentioned, is indeed the name of the game. In addition to being overconfident about this race, Rep. Maloney came under fire for rushing to run in the 17th Congressional District. 

The House primary race in New York was thrown into chaos, after courts threw out blatantly unconstitutional maps that were challenged in lawsuits. State Democrats had no-one to blame but themselves for putting forth such gerrymandered maps, though. Maloney's move forced Rep. Mondaire Jones (D-NY), a freshman squad member, to run in the 10th Congressional District, bringing about cries of racism as Jones is black. Jones also lost his seat, ultimately coming in third in the primary. 

In addition to "Maloney" trending on Twitter, so is "DCCC" and "Mondaire Jones," with the latter trend indicating people haven't forgotten what the congressman did.

Trouble truly began brewing for Maloney late last month, when Cook Political Report changed their forecast to a "Toss Up."

When it comes to the New York congressional races, it's worth mentioning that although Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-NY) did not win his gubernatorial race against Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-NY), it does look like what success he did have may have helped down ballot races.