Ex-News Anchor is Running for Congress

(FeaturedHeadlines.com) – A former anchor for CNN is attempting to make the switch from the newsroom to the halls of Congress. Ex-senior political analyst John Avlon is running for one of New York’s seats in the US House of Representatives as a Democrat after leaving the news network on February 8.

Avlon is running to represent New York’s 1st Congressional District, which includes eastern portions of Long Island. The seat is currently held by Republican Congressman Nick LaLota, although it is considered a swing seat.

Avlon’s campaign announcement framed his candidacy as explicitly opposed to former US President Donald Trump, who is running for re-election in 2024. Long Island deserves a representative who fights for “their values, not Trump’s,” Avlon said in a statement to social media platform X.

During his time at CNN, Avlon made numerous anti-Trump comments, such as calling the former president “delusional” for claiming he won the 2020 election. Democrats must build a broad coalition in 2024 to defend the United States from “MAGA minions,” Avlon said in his campaign announcement.

Avlon will compete in the Democratic Party primary against several other candidates, including former judge Craig Herskowitz, former State Senator James Gaughran, and former Stony Brook University chemistry professor Nancy Goroff. The primary election is set for June 25.

New York’s 1st Congressional District holds more than 565,000 voters, according to state elections data. One-third of voters are Democrats, 32% are Republicans, and 29% are independents.

Avlon’s campaign drew the support of several other media personalities, including fellow ex-CNN employee Don Lemon, whom the network fired in April 2023. Lemon plugged a campaign donation link for Avlon, adding that he lives in the 1st Congressional District.

In January, Lemon announced that he is launching a new media program, which he said will debut on X due to its free speech policies. Perhaps if Avlon loses the election, the former CNN figure will likewise find himself back in the media sphere whence he came.

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