“This ain’t Mississippi, where he has to play to the hard right of the Tea Party,” said former Ulster County and Kingston Democratic Party chairman Tom Hoffay of Gibson’s voting record. “But the fact is, his votes are adding up in favor of the Republican majority in Congress.”
Gibson’s centrist course doesn’t seem to have hurt him with more conservative voters. Conservative talk show host and Ulster County Conservative Party chairman Ed Gaddy said he had found Gibson “easy to work with” and “accessible” on constituent issues. As for his voting record, Gaddy said while he’s disagreed with some of Gibson’s positions he feels Gibson’s been solid on “core issues” that matter to conservative voters.
“I don’t want to say he’s not perfect,” said Gaddy. “But the last time we had a perfect conservative candidate his name was Ronald Reagan.”
Young, rich and progressive
While Gibson seeks to position himself as a problem-solving moderate, Eldridge is pushing an unabashedly progressive agenda. Eldridge, who’ll turn 28 at the end of this month, is also pushing back against allegations that he’s a callow carpetbagger who’s seeking to, in Gibson’s words, “buy a seat in Congress.” Eldridge is the husband of Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes. The couple moved to Shandaken, and the 19th Congressional District, in January 2013.
Eldridge’s involvement in the Hudson Valley dates to 2011 when he moved from New York City to Garrison (and, critics say, positioned himself for a run at the 18th Congressional District then held by Nan Hayworth) and started Hudson River Ventures. His venture capital firm has helped fund the startup or expansion of about 20 local small firms. HRV beneficiaries include Bread Alone Bakery and the Hudson Valley Seed Library. Eldridge also serves on the board of Scenic Hudson, where he helped fund a climate change action plan for the City of Kingston and helped fund a 3-D printing center at SUNY New Paltz. Eldridge served as political director for Freedom to Marry, a lobbying group which led the hard-fought and ultimately successful push for same-sex marriage in New York.
“I’ve been very connected to the district,” said Eldridge. “My husband and I got married in the Hudson Valley, we chose to live here for the reasons a lot of people did — it’s a great place to live, to start a company, to settle down.”
On the issues, Eldridge, whose family background is in education, ticks off a list of progressive initiatives: raising the minimum wage, comprehensive immigration reform with a path to citizenship for undocumented residents, closing tax loopholes for big-energy companies and campaign-finance reform. Eldridge said he had, in contrast to Gibson, opted not to take funds from corporate or industry political action committees.
Federal Elections Commission records show that Gibson has raised some $907,000 from PACs, which include industry and corporate groups as well as political entities. Gibson’s campaign, meanwhile, claims that Eldridge has poured some $1.3 million of his personal fortune into the campaign. (Federal elections records show “candidate contributions” to Eldridge’s campaign totaling $965,000 between January 2013 and June 2014).
While he had the financial means to avoid taking corporate money — his husband’s net worth has been pegged at ranging from $400 million to $700 million — Eldridge said he wanted to work for campaign finance reform to give other candidates the same freedom.
“We need to create a system where you don’t have to be independently wealthy to be politically independent,” said Eldridge.
Eldridge’s stated vision for the Hudson Valley includes an emphasis on small business and entrepreneurial ventures, especially ones that build on the region’s strong food-and-beverage infrastructure. To that end, he said, he wants to see changes in the Small Business Administration that will make it easier for fledgling firms to access capital and more government investment in infrastructure, high-speed Internet and job training.
The public’s mind
As the candidates race across the sprawling district, drumming up support at summertime community picnics, pancake breakfasts and other events, observers say most NY-19 voters are still largely unaware of the race. That will change in the coming months as both candidates deploy volunteers, open field offices and phone banks, and take their case to the airwaves and social media. Eldridge, whose campaign took a hit in April from an unflattering profile on the website Politico which alleged disconnection from the press, underwent a shakeup earlier this month with the appointment of a new campaign director. Running things now for Eldridge is Gabrielle Quintana Greenfield, who most recently worked for Virginia House candidate Don Bayer.
Over the summer, Eldridge’s team has opened up field offices in Kingston, Monticello and Hudson. Another is planned for Oneonta. Meanwhile, Eldridge supporters say they’ve been impressed by his energetic style. Eldridge, they said, often attends two or three events a day and keeps up a steady schedule of door-knocking meet-and-greets with would-be constituents.
Ulster County Democratic Committee chairman Frank Cardinale said that Eldridge, despite his relative newness to the area, had managed to spark interest and support from the party activists who will be key to the on-the-ground effort in campaign’s final stages. “The people who know him like him and they’re willing to work for him,” said Cardinale. “In any campaign you want to build steam and not peak too soon. He’s going in the right direction and he’s going methodically.”
Gibson, meanwhile, is working to shore up support among independent voters and Democrats by appealing to the “healthy pragmatism” that he sees as the prevailing political instinct in the district. He’s also hoping that his record on constituent services and issues important to local voters, like support for Lyme disease research, will help allay any ideological misgivings among more liberal voters.
“The best re-election strategy is service,” said Gibson. “And I have a record that bears that out.”
