Congressman Mike Lawler announced on Wednesday that he will now be running for a third term in New York’s 17th District in the 2026 midterms, forgoing a bid for New York governor.
“After months of deliberating over this and really working through it, I’ve decided the right thing to do for me and my family, and my district is to run for reelection,” Rep. Lawler said. “My seat was determinative of control of the House back in 2022 and again in 2024,” he added.
Lawler had been considering a gubernatorial run, among the Republicans looking to challenge incumbent Gov. Kathy Hochul in next year’s statewide election. But he said in an interview Wednesday morning that he intends to stay in the House representing the 17th Congressional District.
According to multiple sources, Lawler, who previously stated he was the best candidate to take on Governor Hochul, met with President Donald Trump last week for about an hour in the Oval Office, in a not-so-subtle attempt to clear the field for upstate Rep. Elise Stefanik to get the GOP nomination. Trump and Lawler discussed his seat as key to keeping the House of Representatives red.
“While I fundamentally believe I am best positioned to take on Kathy Hochul and offer New Yorkers a real choice for Governor, I have made the decision to run for re-election to the House and continue the important work I’ve been doing over the past two and a half years,” Lawler shared in a statement with Fox News Digital Wednesday morning.
In making his rounds in the media after his announcement, Lawler couldn’t resist taking a shot at Hochul
“There’s no question Kathy Hochul is the worst governor in America,” Lawler told “Fox and Friends.” “But after months of deliberating over this and really working through it, I’ve decided the right thing to do for me and my family, and my district is to run for reelection. My seat was determinative of control of the House back in 2022 and again in 2024. I’m one of only three Republicans that won a seat that Kamala Harris also won. Keeping the House majority is critical if we are going to continue to move this economy in the right direction.”
Lawler has been a growing star among New York Republicans since the former assemblyman defeated powerful incumbent Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D-NY) in 2022. Lawler was the only New York Republican re-elected in 2024 — and won in a district also carried by Kamala Harris.
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