“In upstate New York, we believe if you work hard and play by the rules, you should get a fair shot. But tonight, we heard about a shameless tax giveaway to billionaires like Elon Musk paid for by newborns who need healthcare, hard-working families who need relief, and nursing home residents who need round-the-clock care. I don't know a single Upstate New Yorker who thinks billionaires deserve another break while everyone else gets screwed – I sure as hell don’t.” Riley.House.com, 2025
BACKGROUND + EXPERIENCE
Rep. Riley was elected to Congress in 2024. He was born + raised in a working-class neighborhood of Endicott, New York. With student loans, savings from his newspaper route + part-time work, he graduated with high honors from The College of William & Mary + Harvard Law School. At his law school graduation, then Dean Elena Kagan presented Riley with the Dean’s Award for Community Leadership in recognition of his record in public service.
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​Riley started in public service as a Staff Assistant in Congressman Maurice Hinchey’s office. He was subsequently a Fellow on Senator Ted Kennedy’s Labor & Pensions Committee staff where he worked on legislation to raise the minimum wage + fought back against big corporations that had tried to weaken the Family & Medical Leave Act. Riley was a Policy Analyst at the Department of Labor where he focused on strengthening safety nets like the unemployment insurance + trade adjustment assistance programs for communities that lost jobs through no fault of their own. After Hurricane Katrina, Riley volunteered in a legal aid clinic in New Orleans assisting workers who lost their jobs due to the storm.
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After graduating law school, Riley moved to south Florida to work with the American Academy of Pediatrics on a landmark civil rights lawsuit representing kids from low-income families having difficulty accessing healthcare. The Public Interest Law Center presented Riley + his team with the Thaddeus Stevens Award in recognition of their work on that case.
Riley served as law clerk for Judge Kim Wardlaw on the Court of Appeals for the California Ninth Circuit where he handled complex constitutional cases. As an attorney in the Senate, he worked to restore the Voting Rights Act after it was gutted by the Supreme Court. Following his clerkship, Riley was General Counsel to Senator Al Franken on the Senate Judiciary Committee where he led efforts to deal with the opioid crisis + fought for voting rights and campaign finance reform among other projects.
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As an attorney in private legal practice, Riley has filed briefs in the Supreme Court arguing for stronger campaign finance laws + healthcare for all. He filed briefs in the lower courts arguing for ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment + improved access to benefits for veterans. He also supported legal challenges opposing the Trump administration’s discriminatory immigration policies. Riley filed Supreme Court arguments supporting Dreamers + opposing the Muslim ban.
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Riley ran for Congress in a new NY-19 District in 2022 facing Marc Molinaro. He received 49.2% of the vote in one losing to Molinaro by 1.6% – one of the closest House elections in the country that cycle.
ON THE ISSUES
• Strengthen + expand the middle class by protecting Medicare + Social Security.
• Protect the environment + fight climate change.
• Keep our communities safe + defend democracy + constitutional rights
POLITICS IN NEW YORK + DISTRICT 19
NY-19 was among 18 “Biden” seats across the country Democrats hoped to retake in November 2024 following disappointments in that state in the 2022 midterm elections. His 2024 victory over Molinaro + the Kamela Harris’s slim margin of victory in the district of .7% speak to to the likely competitiveness of this seat in 2026.
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At this point there is no declared Republican candidate for this seat. The New York primary will likely be held in June 2026. For his part, while Molinaro would again be a formidable opponent, he has been nominated for a senior position with the U.S Department of Transportation making it unlikely he will run for this seat. Given the district’s current makeup + Riley’s impressive qualifications, Democrats have an excellent opportunity to retain a key swing seat in the effort to regain the House majority.
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