U.S. Rep. John Katko, a Republican, is running for reelection in the 24th Congressional District. Dana Balter, right, is the Democratic nominee.
Voters in the 24th Congressional District got a preview two weeks ago of what to expect in the rematch between Republican U.S. Rep. John Katko and Democratic challenger Dana Balter.
Katko, R-Camillus, released his first television commercial of the 2020 campaign that featured a familiar theme: bipartisanship. As he did in his 2016 and 2018 reelection bids, the incumbent highlighted his record of working with members of both parties to pass legislation in Congress.
A few days later, Balter, D-Syracuse, offered a rebuttal. Her campaign released a TV ad that questioned whether Katko is truly bipartisan and offered his votes in support of the GOP tax plan and against the House Democrats' prescription drug price reform proposal as examples.
The 30-second ads don't tell the full story of this campaign. There are many policy differences between the two candidates. But within each of their messages is a simple argument: Who is the best to lead central New York in Congress?
Katko, who was first elected to Congress in 2014, thinks he has the legislative achievements to win a fourth term.
"I run on my record and it's about my record," he said in an interview with The Citizen. "And I also hope it's about who's best to be able to lead us out of this mess we're in right now. Is it someone with my background and experience and proven background of bipartisanship? Or is it somebody who is trying to hide her far-left agenda by simply attacking me every chance she can get?"
During the first meeting between Balter and Katko in 2018, the latter often criticized the former as too extreme for the district. That was largely based on Balter's support of Medicare for All, which she believes will help achieve universal health care and ensure that everyone has at least a basic level of coverage.
Balter told The Citizen that she thinks Katko labels her a "far-left" candidate because "he knows that I am exactly the kind of representative that voters are looking for." She mentioned her support of Medicare for All and polling that shows more than 60% of Americans support the idea.
"He knows that where I stand on the issues is where the majority of central and western New Yorkers stand — that I'm fighting for the same values as voters all across this district care about," she said. "And if he were really honest about that, he would lose."
In addition to his experience, Katko thinks there is another trait that sets him apart from Balter. He believes that one of the main questions in the race will be which candidate can be a check on the president.
When Katko was first elected, it was during the final years of President Barack Obama's administration. Obama signed two Katko-sponsored bills that received bipartisan support in Congress. And while Katko did work with Democrats on other issues during the Obama years, he also had plenty of policy disagreements with the administration.
After Donald Trump became president, Katko contends that he's maintained that same approach. He's worked with the Trump administration on some issues, such as the tax law in 2017. He says he's voted against Trump "routinely." A FiveThirtyEight analysis shows that Katko has voted in line with Trump's position 76.2% of the time since 2017, the fourth-lowest score among active GOP members.
He reiterated his argument to voters — that it's going to be about who can be a bipartisan check on the president and who has the experience to do the job.
"I'm going to keep pounding that the entire time because that's what it should be about."
Balter views one of her campaign's main jobs in this election as informing voters about Katko's record. She thinks that when they do that, voters will find that it's Katko, not her, who supports ideas outside of the mainstream.
She highlighted her support of universal background checks for gun purchases and legislation that aims to end the influence of corporate and wealthy interests in the political system. National polling indicates there is strong support for both positions. And while Katko has cosponsored measures that seek to overturn the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision that affected campaign spending, he opposes universal background checks.
"My plans for this election, much like it was last time, is to just tell voters the truth," Balter said. "And then the choice is up to them."
She continued, "That's what an election is about. They get to decide which of these candidates best represents their values. Which of these candidates is fighting for a vision of our community that they support and that they want to see enacted? And I'm confident based on those statistics and based on my conversations with voters in every corner of this district, including voters who don't agree with me on all the issues, that when presented with that choice they will send me to Congress."
Both candidates agree that there is an advantage to knowing their opponent. When they first faced each other in 2018, Katko won by five percentage points.
From Katko's perspective, not a lot has changed over the last two years. He views Balter as an "unabashed liberal" and claimed she's trying to hide her positions on issues because it won't be popular in the district.
"I give her credit: She's consistently left," he said. "She's consistent about her Medicare for All (position). She's consistent about not wanting to answer such basic questions. She doesn't ever try to say she disagrees with the far left's agenda and she is what she is. I give her credit for being consistently liberal, but she is far left of this district. That was the message last time. It's going to be a message this time."
For Balter, having the experience of a second-time candidate has plenty of advantages. She says she's a lot more skilled as a candidate and it helps to have name recognition and an established base of support.
Like Katko, she also thinks it's an advantage that she knows her opponent. She's prepared for his campaign tactics, which she described as "a little bit nasty."
"I'm not particularly concerned with what he says about me, especially when much of it is not true," she said. "I'm really focused on doing what's best for the people of the 24th district and making sure that voters have an honest accounting of both what's at stake and what the congressman has done over the last five years that he's been in office. Because I believe when presented with the facts, the choice is clear and that voters will send me to Washington in November."
The 24th district includes all of Cayuga, Onondaga and Wayne counties, plus the western part of Oswego County. Enrollment figures show that there are over 13,000 more Democratic voters than Republicans in the district.
Early internal polls released by Democratic organizations show that it's a tight race. In one poll, Balter had a three-point lead. Another showed that it's a dead heat.
Katko does have a financial advantage in the race. He has $1.3 million more than Balter in his campaign account.
The general election is Tuesday, Nov. 3.
Politics reporter Robert Harding can be reached at (315) 282-2220 or robert.harding@lee.net. Follow him on Twitter @robertharding.
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