List of Democratic Candidates in CD-17th Grows

Another Democrat has entered the fray for what promises to be a hotly contested congressional race next year for the 17th Congressional District which encompasses all of Putnam and Rockland counties and sections of Westchester and Dutchess.

Currently, Republican Mike Lawler fills the seat, a lawmaker who has come under scrutiny in recent weeks.

Monday’s announcement by Effie Phillips-Staley marked the sixth Democrat to enter the race in an attempt to wrestle back the seat formerly held by Congressman Sean Patrick Maloney of Cold Spring. 

The other five Democrats include Rockland County Legislator Beth Davidson, Army veteran Cait Conley, Westchester 914Cares founder Jessica Reinmann, journalist Mike Sacks and John Sullivan. 

MTA Board member Neal Zuckerman’s name has also been batted about but the Garrison resident has not made any announcement as of the current time.

In making her announcement, Phillips-Staley charged that “corporations were making record profits but not paying their fair share in taxes.”

She alleged that President Trump and Congressman Lawler were “targeting the VA, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, while their chaos tanks our economy. That’s not the America my parents believed in, that’s not the America I want to leave for my kids.”

Phillips-Staley is a Village of Tarrytown trustee and a non-profit executive dedicating her career to social justice and public service. She is the daughter of an immigrant from El Salvador and a U.S. veteran ho served in two wars.

The candidate explained that diversity is strength. “Working people built America and that no one should struggle to house their family or afford healthcare.”