Joshua Paul Riley[2] (born 1980/1981) is an American lawyer and politician. He is an American politician who is the member-elect for the United States House of Representatives for New York's 19th congressional district. He is a member of the Democratic Party.[3]
Josh Riley | |
|---|---|
| Member-elect of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York's 19th district | |
| Assuming office January 3, 2025 | |
| Succeeding | Marc Molinaro |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Joshua Paul Riley 1980 or 1981 (age 43–44)[1] Endicott, New York, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse |
Monica Kohli (m. 2016) |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | College of William & Mary (BS) Harvard University (JD) |
| Occupation |
|
| Website | Campaign website |
Early life and education
editRiley was born in Endicott, New York, to Paul and Barbara Riley.[4][5]
Riley graduated from Union-Endicott High School in 1999 and earned a bachelor's degree in government and economics from the College of William & Mary in 2003.[6][7][8] He worked as an aide to U.S. Representative Maurice Hinchey during college and said the late congressman inspired him to go into public service.[9] After graduation, he worked as a policy analyst at the United States Department of Labor where he worked on unemployment and trade adjustment program.[9] He began attending Harvard Law School in 2004 and worked as a Heyman Fellow on the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.[8][7] He also volunteered for a legal aid clinic to assist victims of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans.[4] He graduated with a Juris Doctor in 2007 and was presented the Dean's Award for Community Leadership by then-Dean of Harvard Law School and current U.S. Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan.[4][8]
Career
editEarly career
editAfter law school, Riley worked in the law firm of Boies Schiller Flexner LLP as an associate from 2007 to 2009.[8] From 2009 to 2010, he clerked for Judge Kim McLane Wardlaw of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in California.[8][4] He returned to Boies Schiller Flexner LLP in 2010 before leaving again in 2011 to become general counsel to Senator Al Franken on the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee.[6][10] In 2014, he returned to Boies Schiller Flexner LLP where he worked as a counselor and later partner until 2021.[6] He most recently worked as a partner in the law firm of Jenner & Block.[6]
U.S. House of Representatives
edit2022 candidacy
editIn November 2021, Riley declared his candidacy for Congress in New York's 22nd congressional district, challenging incumbent Republican U.S. Representative Claudia Tenney.[11] Due to redistricting, redrawing of the map by a court-appointed special master, and U.S. Representative Antonio Delgado resigning to become the Lieutenant Governor of New York, Riley ended up running in the new 19th congressional district.[12] The district was represented by Pat Ryan, a Democrat, who won the August special election to succeed Delgado but ran in the new New York's 18th congressional district in the November general election due to redistricting.[13] The 18th district became vacant when incumbent U.S. Representative Sean Patrick Maloney decided to run in the neighboring 17th congressional district after redistricting, which forced out U.S. Representative Mondaire Jones, the incumbent of the 17th district.[14]
Riley defeated Dutchess County businesswoman Jamie Cheney in the Democratic primary and faced Republican nominee and Dutchess County executive Marc Molinaro in the general election.[15] Molinaro lost the August special election to Pat Ryan for the old 19th district, but was on the ballot again in November for the new 19th district.[15] Molinaro defeated Riley in the general election.[16]
2024 candidacy
editRiley defeated Molinaro in a rematch in the general election.[17]
Electoral history
edit2022
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Josh Riley | 31,193 | 60.7 | |
| Democratic | Jamie Cheney | 18,625 | 36.2 | |
| Total votes | 51,417 | 100.0 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Josh Riley | 119,855 | 42.33% | |
| Working Families | Josh Riley | 16,216 | 5.73% | |
| Total | Josh Riley | 136,071 | 48.05% | |
| Republican | Marc Molinaro | 126,848 | 44.80% | |
| Conservative | Marc Molinaro | 15,506 | 5.48% | |
| Total | Marc Molinaro | 142,354 | 50.27% | |
| Total votes | 283,173 | 100% | ||
Personal life
editRiley married Monica Kohli in Washington, D.C., in 2016. They reside in Ithaca, New York, with their two sons.[21][4]
References
edit- ^ "In Heated House Race, a Moderate Republican Goes Full Trump". The New York Times. October 14, 2024. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
- ^ "Rep. Josh Riley - D New York, 19th - Biography". LegiStorm. Retrieved 2024-11-06.
- ^ Ngo, Emily (November 6, 2024). "Dem Josh Riley topples House Republican in crucial upstate New York district". Politico. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e Henderson, Nick (August 15, 2022). "Josh Riley brings experience to 19th District race". Hudson Valley One. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ^ Golden, Vaughn (August 10, 2022). "NY-19 primary: Josh Riley touts policy experience, Southern Tier roots". WSKG-FM. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ^ a b c d Cunnington, Tyler (November 9, 2021). "Binghamton Native and First-Time Politician Josh Riley Announces his Running for Congress". WICZ-TV. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ^ a b Harding, Robert (February 5, 2022). "Josh Riley joins Democratic field in race to represent Auburn, Syracuse in Congress". The Citizen. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e "Joshua Riley's Biography". Justfacts.votesmart.org. Vote Smart. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
- ^ a b Teitelbaum, Felix (May 12, 2022). "Interview: Congressional Candidate Josh Riley". WRFI. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ^ Rod, Marc (September 8, 2022). "Molinaro looks for a second chance in a new NY-19, with a new opponent". Jewish Insider. Retrieved November 19, 2022.
- ^ Weiner, Mark (November 9, 2021). "Former U.S. Senate lawyer will seek to unseat Rep. Claudia Tenney in 2022 election". The Post-Standard. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ^ Weiner, Mark (May 16, 2022). "Josh Riley exits race for Congress in Central New York to campaign in Southern Tier". The Post-Standard. Retrieved September 14, 2022.
- ^ Ashford, Grace (August 24, 2022). "Democrat Pat Ryan Wins in House Race That Turned on Abortion". The New York Times. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
- ^ Fandos, Nicholas (May 17, 2022). "Fearing 'Extinction-Level Event,' N.Y. Democrats Turn Against Each Other". The New York Times. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
- ^ a b Golden, Vaughn (August 24, 2022). "Riley defeats Cheney in Democratic primary for 19th Congressional District". WSKG-FM. Retrieved September 15, 2022.
- ^ Lee, Vincent (November 9, 2022). "Marc Molinaro Wins New York House Race, Defeating Democrat Riley". Bloomberg News. Retrieved November 10, 2022.
- ^ https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/06/nyregion/new-york-house-molinaro-riley.html
- ^ "2022 Election Results - New York State Board of Elections". New York State Board of Elections. November 19, 2022. Retrieved November 19, 2022.
- ^ "New York 19th Congressional District Election Results 2022: Molinaro Defeats Riley - The New York Times". The New York Times. 8 November 2022. Retrieved November 19, 2022.
- ^ "New York State Unofficial Election Night Results". New York State Board of Elections. November 19, 2022. Retrieved November 19, 2022.
- ^ Grego, Patrick (October 25, 2022). "On the Trail with Josh Riley - The River". The River Hudson Valley Newsroom. Retrieved November 19, 2022.