As you know, George Santos has been expelled from Congress, leaving an all-important open seat in the House of Representatives. Santos was a Republican, so the majority of that party narrowly agreed to his exit.
A special election has been scheduled for February 13 to fill that seat. It will feature former Congressman Tom Suozzi against Mazi Melesa Pilip, who currently serves in the Nassau County Legislature.
Pilip is an Ethiopian born American who immigrated with her family to Israel at the age of 12 during Operation Solomon. In Israel, she served in the paratrooper brigade in the IDF. She later married, moved to the U.S., and now lives in Great Neck with her husband and seven children.
Tom Suozzi has always been a good friend and a strong supporter of Israel during his years in government. He was a popular personality as Nassau County Executive dating back to 2002, and I recall the Friday morning that he convened the press in his Mineola office after he returned from his first trip to Israel, excited and beaming.
But then Tom decided to run for Governor and lost handily to Elliott Spitzer. He tried again to run for Governor last year after Andrew Cuomo abruptly resigned following a harassment scandal. Now Suozzi wants to make a Congressional comeback, and he would be great in that seat except for the fact that we need a Republican to represent Long Island and help extend Republican control of the House.
Mazi Pilip is that person. We need to get to know her and vote her into office in the February 13, 2024 special election. Following the election, whoever wins will have to run again in November of 2024, so it is a two-part election.
Curiously even though AIPAC, the important America Israel Public Affairs Committee, has stated that they would play more of an activist role in important election campaigns that could dramatically impact the balance of power, they announced this week that they would remain on the sidelines in the Pilip-Suozzi Congressional campaign.
At the same time, NORPAC, the non-partisan public action committee, is endorsing Mazi Melesa Pilip for Congress in the New York District 3 race.
We have to give credit to Nassau County Republican Party Chairman Joe Cairo and County Executive Bruce Blakeman for selecting the person we believe is the right candidate and hopefully will be our next Congressperson from New York District 3 on Long Island.
This doesn’t mean we like Tom Suozzi any less. It just means we need Republican control of the House for the sake of the United States, Israel, and the U.S.-Israel relationship.
Mazi Melesa Pilip is our choice.
Read more of Larry Gordon’s articles at 5TJT.com. Follow 5 Towns Jewish Times on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for updates and live videos. Comments, questions, and suggestions are welcome at 5TJT.com and on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
