Legal pundit George Conway Monday launched a campaign for the Manhattan congressional seat held by Rep. Jerry Nadler, who will not seek reelection.
The fierce critic of President Trump and ex-husband of former Trump spokeswoman Kellyanne Conway is betting that anger at the White House’s right-wing agenda will catapult him to the top of a crowded Democratic primary field in the deep-blue NY-12 district covering both the Upper West and Upper East sides.
“I’m running for Congress to take the fight directly back to (Trump) on your behalf, on the behalf of New Yorkers to whom I owe so much,” Conway said in a launch video. “To protect the fundamental rights and basic economic needs of all New Yorkers.”
A former Republican, Conway portrayed himself as a fearless and effective fighter against Trump, noting that he could have abandoned his principles and joined other GOP notables in jumping on the MAGA gravy train.
“I’ve been fighting Trump for years, and nothing stopped me,” he said.
Conway, 62, a former conservative lawyer who has never before run for political office, would appear to be a long shot in the race for the solidly liberal district that Nadler has represented for more than three decades.
Conway admits voting for Trump in 2016 and even met with the new president in 2017 to discuss a post in the administration. But he broke decisively with Trump even as his then-wife served was a top White House communications aide.
Conway has mostly lived in suburban Washington, D.C., but recently moved to Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood with his pet dog, who regularly appears in his prolific social media posts.
Among the other Democratic primary hopefuls in the NY-12 race are: Assemblyman Micah Lasher, a protege of Nadler; Kennedy scion Jack Schlossberg; school shooting survivor Cameron Kasky; Assemblyman Alex Bores; and City Councilmember Erik Bottcher.
