Democrat Crosses the Aisle: Golden Backs Lawler Over Party

In a move that stunned Capitol Hill and infuriated House Democratic leadership, Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) endorsed Republican Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) for re-election on Monday, marking one of the most consequential bipartisan breaks of the midterm cycle.

Golden, who announced last November he would not seek re-election, made his case in an op-ed published in The Journal News, calling Lawler "a true partner" and "a friend to fishing families he will never represent." The praise centered on the Northeast Lobstermen Protection Act, legislation extending a federal pause on new regulations for Maine's lobster industry, a bill Lawler backed despite having no lobster fishery in his own Hudson Valley district.

Golden also pointed to Lawler's support for restoring collective bargaining rights for federal workers after the Trump administration stripped them, along with backing for health insurance subsidies, as proof the New York Republican puts results over party.

Lawler, one of the House GOP's top midterm targets in a district Kamala Harris carried in 2024, responded on X, calling Golden a "servant leader" who "fought tirelessly for his district."

House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries dismissed the move, calling it an "11th hour" ploy from "a retiring Congressmember who represents an out of town district more than 400 miles away," insisting the race will be decided by Hudson Valley voters, not Golden.

The endorsement is the latest in a string of party defections from Golden, who twice this month voted with Republicans on procedural measures, including one advancing a GOP resolution denouncing socialism.

Lawler faces Democrat Cait Conley, an Army veteran, in New York's 17th District this November, in a race both parties view as pivotal to control of the House.