There’s no shortage of candidates seeking to replace Rep. Chris Collins in a special election.
“Republicans shouldn’t have much trouble holding the district,” said Kyle Kondik, who helps run the University of Virginia Center for Politics’ congressional race tracking operation, Sabato’s Crystal Ball.
“While the party has been hurt by retirements and resignations in the Trump era, this is the rare instance where a congressman leaving relieves a GOP headache as opposed to creating one.”
In 2018, a then-indicted Collins scraped past Democratic challenger Nate McMurray by just 1,000 votes.
There are a half-dozen Republicans and conservatives eyeing the race, including Erie County Comptroller Stefan Mychajliw, a Collins ally, and state Sens. Robert Ortt and Chris Jacobs, whose family runs the Delaware North sports and gaming empire.
Jeremy Zellnor, Erie County Democratic chair, admitted his party would have a tough fight.
“This district has always been a challenge,” he said. “If we find the right person, we expect to be competitive.”
Speculation swirled about when Gov. Andrew Cuomo would call the contest, with some observers saying he may wait until the June congressional primaries.