The 24th Congressional District of New York is a large, mostly rural upstate seat running along the southern shore of Lake Ontario and reaching into the Finger Lakes, the North Country, and parts of Western New York. It has been represented since January 2023 by Republican Claudia Tenney, who won reelection in 2024 by more than 31 percentage points. With a Cook Partisan Voting Index of R+11, it is one of the most reliably conservative districts in the state, and the Cook Political Report rates the 2026 contest as Solid Republican.1Cook Political Report. NY-24 House Race
Where the District Is
The district covers 14 counties. It fully contains Wayne, Oswego, Seneca, Yates, Livingston, Orleans, Wyoming, Genesee, Ontario, and Cayuga counties, along with nearly all of Niagara County, the western half of Jefferson County, the northern half of Steuben County, and parts of Schuyler County.2Office of Congresswoman Claudia Tenney. Our District Population is spread across small cities rather than concentrated in one place; Batavia, Oswego, Watertown, and Lockport are among the larger communities. Niagara Falls anchors the west end, and Jefferson County anchors the north.
Agriculture drives much of the local economy. The district has been described as containing the most worked agricultural land in New York, and farm-related policy—H-2A temporary worker visas, tariffs, farmland preservation—runs through the district’s politics.3Rochester Beacon. The Emerging Battle for District 24 Military installations, SUNY campuses, and small manufacturers round out the economic base.
How the Current Boundaries Were Drawn
The current lines came out of a long redistricting fight. After the 2020 Census, New York’s Independent Redistricting Commission deadlocked, and the legislature drew its own map in early 2022. The New York Court of Appeals struck that map down in April 2022 as an unconstitutional partisan gerrymander, and a court-appointed special master drew interim lines for the 2022 elections.4Loyola Law School. New York Redistricting
In December 2023, the Court of Appeals ruled in Hoffmann v. New York State Independent Redistricting Commission that those court-drawn lines were temporary and ordered new maps by February 2024.5Federalist Society. New York High Court Orders New Maps Before Election The commission’s plan was rejected by the legislature, which then passed its own map on February 28, 2024. Governor Kathy Hochul signed it the same day, and those are the lines in effect through the 2030 census. The result, along Lake Ontario, resembles what legislative Democrats had originally proposed in 2022: a district that consolidates Republican-leaning voters from several former seats into a single strongly conservative one.6City & State New York. Revisiting New York’s 2022 Congressional Gerrymander
The Incumbent: Claudia Tenney
Tenney previously served a single House term from 2017 to 2019 representing a different upstate district before winning NY-24 in 2022. In November 2024, she defeated Democrat David Wagenhauser with roughly 235,900 votes (65.7%) to Wagenhauser’s 123,300 (34.3%).7The New York Times. New York 24th Congressional District Results In 2022, she took the seat with about 182,000 votes and a similar share against Steven Holden.8New York State Board of Elections. Candidate Election Results
Committees and Legislation
Tenney sits on the House Ways and Means Committee (Health and Trade subcommittees), the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, and the Science, Space, and Technology Committee.9GovTrack. Rep. Claudia Tenney Across her congressional career she has sponsored 225 bills and cosponsored more than 1,800.10Congress.gov. Representative Claudia Tenney The Parity for Child Exploitation Offenders Act (H.R. 7051) was enacted during the 118th Congress. In June 2026 she introduced the Healthcare is Human Act (H.R. 7884) and a tax bill (H.R. 9487) addressing professional women’s sports franchises. She is a member of the Republican Study Committee.
Policy Positions
Tenney has been vocal on immigration and border security, framing it as a top priority under an “America First” agenda. She voted to impeach DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and has introduced or cosponsored the DIRECT Act (redirecting IRS funding toward Customs and Border Protection hiring), the Laken Riley Act (requiring detention of undocumented immigrants charged with crimes), and legislation to establish a Northern Border Coordination Center, reflecting the district’s proximity to Canada.11Office of Congresswoman Claudia Tenney. Border Security Plan On the economic side, she has highlighted semiconductor manufacturing tax credits and support for small businesses and agriculture.
The Tennis-Expenses Report
In January 2026, Politico reported that Tenney’s campaign may have used campaign funds for personal tennis-related expenses. The investigation found that her campaign spent $3,913 at a New York City hotel during the U.S. Open and more than $2,000 on hotels and a rental car in Florida during the Miami Open, both times when Novak Djokovic was competing. The campaign also spent $388 at a Lacoste store in New York, labeling the purchase as “donor gifts”; Tenney was later photographed wearing Lacoste apparel.12Politico. Rep. Claudia Tenney Loves Novak Djokovic — Campaign Cash Daniel Weiner of the Brennan Center for Justice said federal law generally prohibits using campaign funds for personal clothing unless it qualifies as branded campaign paraphernalia.
Tenney’s campaign spokesperson called the report a “desperate attempt to manufacture a smear” and said all expenditures were “fully in compliance with all applicable laws and FEC regulations.”13Press Connects. Claudia Tenney Campaign Funds Tennis Novak Djokovic No FEC complaint had been filed as of mid-2026.
Fundraising
For the 2025–2026 cycle, Tenney’s campaign committee reported raising approximately $2.44 million in total receipts through early June 2026, with roughly $984,000 from individual contributions and about $1.02 million from other political committees. The campaign held about $1.13 million in cash on hand and reported no outstanding debts.14Federal Election Commission. Claudia Tenney for Congress
The 2026 Race
Tenney is running for reelection. No Republican primary challenger had emerged by the April 2026 filing deadline, and prediction markets gave Republicans about an 84% chance of holding the seat as of mid-2026.15City & State New York. NY-24 House Race
The Democratic Primary
Two Democrats competed in the June 23, 2026, primary. Alissa Ellman, an Army combat veteran and former VA employee, defeated Diana Kastenbaum, a former manufacturing CEO and community organizer, by roughly 62% to 38%.16The New York Times. New York 24th Congressional District Primary Results
Ellman grew up in Houghton in the Genesee Valley and now lives in Lockport. She served at Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan as a flight operations specialist and was later diagnosed with pheochromocytoma, a rare adrenal cancer she attributes to toxic burn pit exposure during her service.17The Lockport Connection. Alissa Ellman Sees Opportunity, Challenge as She Prepares to Face Tenney After working as a special education teacher, she took a position at the Buffalo VA and was fired in early 2026 during staffing cuts carried out under the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency initiative. She attended President Trump’s March 2025 joint address to Congress as a guest of Senator Chuck Schumer.18BTPM. Alissa Ellman, Claudia Tenney, Veterans Affairs, DOGE
Key Issues
Healthcare access is a dominant concern in a district where rural hospitals and providers are under pressure, and constituents at town halls have raised the future of Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.3Rochester Beacon. The Emerging Battle for District 24 Agriculture policy, from tariffs to temporary worker programs, is another persistent flashpoint, along with energy costs, broadband access, and veterans’ issues. Ellman has focused on affordability, proposing energy subsidies and expanded childcare, and has criticized the federal workforce cuts she experienced firsthand.19North Country Public Radio. Meet the Democrats Hoping to Replace Claudia Tenney in NY-24 Tenney has campaigned on border security, her agricultural plan, and semiconductor manufacturing tax credits.
The general election is scheduled for November 3, 2026. The district’s partisan lean makes it a steep climb for any Democratic challenger.