JD Vance rallies GOP House candidate Anthony Constantino in final stretch of campaign

ROME, NEW YORK – Vice President JD Vance called on local Republicans to get out and vote to keep a reliably red upstate House district in GOP control during a fiery rally Monday.

Vance had flown into the former Griffiss Air Force Base in support of GOP businessman Anthony Constantino, who’s hoping to replace retiring Rep. Elise Stefanik in New York’s 21st Congressional District in the North Country — which become a surprise target for Democrats due to controversy around the Republican hopeful.

“I see a place that is not all that different from the place that I grew up,” Vance said, comparing North Country manufacturing hubs like Massena and Rome to his hometown of Middletown, Ohio.

“The story of places like Rome or Middletown, ladies and gentleman it’s not a story about what America has lost. It’s also a story about what America still has the power to build,” Vance said, calling President Trump’s presidency an “America First revolution.”

He promoted Trump’s agenda of “sovereignty” — including cracking down on illegal immigration and cross-border drug trafficking and combative trade policy — both of which are front of mind in a district with a large border with Canada.

“We have done so much and we can do so much more to rebuild the good lives of working people of the 21st Congressional District,” Vance said.

He specifically cheered Constantino for self-funding his campaign and for building his sticker manufacturer, Sticker Mule, in New York despite the state’s tough business climate.

“You have somebody running for Congress that has actually lived putting American workers first for a change,” Vance cheered. “He has fought for American workers. Let’s fight for Anthony tomorrow at the ballot box.”

Vance also encouraged Republicans to “ditch the witch,” Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul, though the veep didn’t mention GOP gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman by name.

The veep’s last-minute visit comes as Democrats see blood in the water in the race for the deep red seat, which Stefanik carried by 24% in 2024. Trump carried the district with 21% of the vote the same year.

But with the seat was suddenly viewed as in play due to a national political environment that favors Democrats, with Constantino having made some enemies of local conservative leaders during a bruising primary battle for the seat.

A shock Siena University poll released early last month showed Constantino’s opponent, Blake Gendebien, leading the Amsterdam-based CEO of Sticker Mule.

The poll, which Constantino’s campaign labeled as “scam” since it asked respondents to weigh in on a write-in candidate, showed Gendebien with a narrow 4-point lead. Democrats also spent $1.4 million in advertising spots in NY21 on Friday.

Constantino said residents of the district needed to get out to pay back Vance for attending the rally.

“And if you do that then I’m going to pay all of you back by going to Congress, creating jobs, keeping the border secure, fighting to cut taxes, restoring our Second Amendment rights in New York State, supporting law enforcement worker is respected,” Constantino said.

Constantino railed for several minutes against press coverage of his race, calling on the crowd to berate reporters in the press pen who he claimed were “evil” for suggesting he held less than a 90% lead against Gendebien.

“We’re not running against Blake, we’re running against these people,” he said, referring to the reporters.

Donald Trump Jr., and US Energy Secretary Chris Wright, also flew in for the event though Stefanik, who has repped the district in 2015, was not present.

Constantino won the nomination during a bitter primary for the district against state Assemblyman Robert Smullen.

The retired marine colonel received the backing of 12 of the 15 GOP county committees in the district as well as state Republican Committee Chairman Ed Cox, but Constantino received the coveted endorsement of Trump.

Constantino has pumped $7 million of his own fortune into the general election race.

Gendebian said the rally showed Republicans were worried after winning the seat by 24 points in 2024. The Conservative Party ballot, which usually aligns with the Republican candidate in House races, was left blank due to a rift with Constantino.

“Now they’re flying in Vice President Vance and President Trump’s son the morning before Election Day to bail out a candidate who spent the whole campaign chasing stunts instead of answering for six-dollar diesel and the Medicaid cuts closing our hospitals,” the Democrat said in a statement.