Mondaire Jones backs George Latimer over Jamaal Bowman in Democratic House primary

Former Rep. Mondaire Jones has come out in support of Westchester County Executive George Latimer in his bid to unseat Rep. Jamaal Bowman in their heated Democratic primary race for New York's 16th Congressional District seat.

Jones, who took office with Bowman in 2020 and is running to reclaim his former seat, stood with Latimer on Tuesday at the Sleepy Hollow Hotel in Westchester to deliver his full-throated endorsement. He praised Latimer as the "clear choice" and a potential "unifying voice" in Congress, while denouncing Bowman for his criticism of Israel since the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas — words that he said had alarmed Jewish residents in his neighboring district.

"I want to be very clear," Jones said. "I am making this endorsement to stand up for my Jewish constituents, because Rep. Bowman and I have very different views on Israel."

Latimer, a longtime elected official who has led the county government since 2018, and Bowman, a second-term House member from Yonkers, will square off on June 25 with early voting set to start on June 15. Interest in the race is high: as of Monday, nearly 8,700 mail-in ballots had already been sent to voters who had requested them, according to the Westchester County Board of Elections.

Latimer has racked up endorsements from Democratic committees in nearly every Westchester town and city, from former Reps. Nita Lowey and Eliot Engel (whom Bowman unseated in 2020), the mayors of Yonkers and White Plains and other local and county officials.

Bowman has the support of House Democratic leaders, including Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, and progressive leaders and groups like Sen. Bernie Sanders and the Working Families Party.

Jones is running to unseat Republican Rep. Mike Lawler in the neighboring 17th Congressional District.

Latimer returned praise for Jones in a statement after their endorsement announcement, calling him an "honest and thoughtful legislator" who had worked with him before his Congress term. Jones was an assistant county attorney in Westchester while Latimer was county executive.

"Mondaire has a record of delivering for the Lower Hudson Valley and has always stood up for communities in need — he talks the talk, and walks the walk,” Latimer said. “I look forward to working with Mondaire in Washington to continue delivering real results for everyone, and provide NY-16 with the leadership it deserves.” 

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Endorsement meant to help "end this nightmare"

Jones, in an interview after his announcement, blasted his former colleague for his vocal stance on the Israel-Hamas war, accusing Bowman of sowing "anxiety and fear and anger" among Jewish people and contributing to a "general climate of hostility toward Israel and Jews." Bowman has blamed Israel for inflicting "collective punishment" on Gaza residents since the Oct. 7 attack, and has demanded a permanent ceasefire for months.

"It is really important that I help to end this nightmare that we have been living through here in the lower Hudson Valley, and that’s why I’m doing what I’m doing,” Jones said, later confirming that he meant Bowman was a "nightmare."

Jones said he was particularly disturbed that Bowman had denied that Hamas terrorists sexually assaulted Israeli women during their attack, and that he was recently endorsed by the Democratic Socialists of America — a group that promoted a pro-Palestinian rally in New York City just days after Hamas slaughtered 1,200 Israelis and took 240 hostages.

He said Bowman called for a ceasefire "before Israel had even begun to defend itself against the worst assault on Jews since the Holocaust.” And he said he was concerned Bowman's posture on the war would harm relations between his Jewish and Black constituents and endanger the important civil-rights coalition the two groups have long formed.

“October 7th really threw our differences into sharp relief," Jones said. "And there has been a doubling down on extremism that cannot come to define the party — not on my watch.”

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How did Bowman and his allies respond?

Bowman issued a response that brushed off the endorsement and touted his "strong coalition" of supporters — including Jeffries, Sanders and various labor unions — and his fighting for "shared democratic values." He touched only briefly on Jones without naming him, suggesting he backed Latimer to try to help his own House race.

"Washington will always appeal to politicians who put their own career aspirations ahead of the needs of the people in our communities," said Bowman, a former Bronx middle school principal. "But from being Principal Bowman to Congressman Bowman, I'm proud to have proven to our district that another way is possible."

Some leading progressives went after Jones for endorsing Latimer, or responded by praising Bowman. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York City called Bowman "a proven, effective, & beloved leader" with "support from cross the entire Democratic Party." Rep. Cori Bush of St. Louis — a fellow "Squad" member with Ocasio-Cortez and Bowman — ripped Jones as a fair-weather friend who betrayed Jones by backing his challenger.

“It’s disgusting," she wrote. "Is that who he wants to be? Someone that the members can’t even trust?"

Ravi Mangla, a spokesman for New York's Working Families Party, said Jones' endorsement means little because voters know Bowman "has been one of the strongest champions in Congress for our public schools and climate."

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How did the news affect the Jones-Lawler 17th District race?

The announcement also made waves in the Jones-Lawler race in the neighboring district.

Jones and Bowman both ran as progressives and took on longtime incumbents in 2020, winning their races and becoming the first two Black congressmen in Westchester's history. Since Jones launched his comeback bid last year, Lawler and his campaign have painted Jones as too left-wing — and aligned with the progressive Bowman — for the more politically mixed 17th Congressional District.

Lawler accused Jones of "desperation and dishonesty" for endorsing Latimer, reprising a 2020 comment that his campaign has spotlighted: Jones' statement in a podcast interview that "we need more people like myself and Mr. Bowman in Congress."

"Mondaire Jones ran for Congress admitting to 'socialist' views, while calling to defund the police and gut immigration enforcement," Chris Russell, a Lawler campaign strategist, said in a statement on Tuesday. "After he got there, Jones voted more than 97% of the time with the far-left radicals and antisemites in the so-called 'Squad'. These are the facts and they are beyond dispute."

Jones, in Tuesday's interview, accused Lawler of changing his views since being interviewed for a 2021 Journal News/lohud article about Bowman and Jones taking different paths in Congress after their elections. He said Lawler was now pairing the two in ideological terms out of "political self interest."

He called his endorsement of Latimer a "moral decision," and contrasted his willingness to condemn Bowman with Lawler's defense of Trump after the former president's recent conviction on felony charges in his hush-money case. He accused Lawler of supporting a "criminal convict and neo-Nazi" for president.

“This shows that I'm willing to stand up to the extremes in my party, while Mike Lawler is completely unwilling to do that, which proves that he is a career political hack,” Jones said. 

Chris McKenna covers government and politics for the Journal News and USA Today Network. Reach him at cmckenna@gannett.com.