Who's running in New York's 23rd congressional district
2 candidates are on the ballot. Below is what each one says they stand for, what they have actually done in office or in public life, and the arguments published for and against them — each quoted from a named source rather than summarised by us.
2 candidates · ballot order · Nick Langworthy currently holds this seat
Medium confidenceMedium confidenceThe candidate's stated positions and basic record are documented, but coverage is thin — often little independent reporting, or criticism from only one side.What would raise it: More independent reporting, a documented voting record, or published criticism from a named opponent would raise this.
What they say they stand for
Their own words. Claims, not verified facts.
Curbing federal spending to bring down grocery, fuel and housing costs.
Energy independence through increased American production, and moving supply chains out of China.
Border enforcement funding and ending catch-and-release; adding 200,000 police officers; permanently criminalising all forms of illicit fentanyl.
Parental choice in education and a Parents' Bill of Rights; restricting women's sports to women.
Second Amendment and religious freedom protections.
Strengthening Social Security and Medicare; voter identification requirements.
What they’ve actually done
Documented record from official sources.
U.S. Representative for the 23rd District since January 2023.
New York State Republican Party chairman from 2019; chairman of the Erie County Republican Committee before that.
Worked in the district offices of Reps. Tom Reynolds and Chris Lee.
Graduate of Pine Valley Central School and Niagara University.
Also carries the Conservative Party line on the November ballot.
Arguments in favor
He defends the Medicaid changes on their detail: work requirements applying only to able-bodied working-age adults without dependents are "common sense", and the state should be looking at "fraud, waste and abuse" given that New York spends more on Medicaid than California or Texas despite smaller populations.
— Nick Langworthy, at town hall events in western New York
He keeps showing up in the district between votes, running telephone town halls where constituents put their own cases to him directly and touring local issues across the counties.
— Post-Journal and Observer Today reporting on his district visits
Arguments against
He voted against extending the Affordable Care Act subsidies, which will raise health costs for working families and seniors across the district — a vote that fits a pattern in his record.
— Aaron Gies, reported by the Wellsville Sun
He brushed off constituents facing the resulting premium spikes: after one told a telephone town hall that rate increases of $25,000 a year were making insurance nearly unaffordable, Langworthy answered that only 0.7% of people in the district are affected by ACA subsidies.
— WesternNYPolitics
What we couldn’t verify
The 0.7% figure is his own and was not independently verified from the sources found.
His committee assignments were not established from the sources found.
No Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee page about him by name was found; the case above comes from his opponent and from local reporting.
Universal health care; he notes medical debt is among the most common causes of bankruptcy, and opposes cuts to Medicare, Medicaid, VA benefits and rural health systems.
Treating housing as a basic need rather than an investment, and making western New York housing-ready.
Federal investment in rural schools, special education, Head Start, Job Corps and Pell Grants.
Raising wages and strengthening workers' bargaining power; support for family farms and price transparency.
Codifying Roe v. Wade protections; universal background checks and red flag laws alongside Second Amendment rights.
Banning stock trading by federal officials and their families, overturning Citizens United, and a seven-year lobbying ban for former members; opposition to irresponsible data centre expansion, fracking and new nuclear projects.
What they’ve actually done
Documented record from official sources.
Has worked as a teacher, non-profit leader, farm worker, restaurant server and bookkeeper.
Also carries the Working Families Party line on the November ballot.
Won the June 23, 2026 Democratic primary.
Has not held elected office.
Arguments in favor
We found none published about this candidate in the sources reviewed.
Arguments against
We found none published about this candidate in the sources reviewed.
What we couldn’t verify
No published criticism of Gies by name could be found: not from Nick Langworthy or his campaign, not from the National Republican Congressional Committee, and not from western New York news coverage. Because no case against him exists on the record, none is presented for him either, rather than showing his own campaign's case unanswered.
He has held no elected office, so there is no voting record to set against his campaign's positions.
His fundraising totals were not reported in material available.
Positions and criticism are quoted from the named sources, not our assessments. This is built to help you start getting informed — confirm the official candidate list with your election authority before you vote.
New York held its primary on June 23, 2026. Republican incumbent Nick Langworthy, who also carries the Conservative Party line, faces Democrat Aaron Gies, who also carries the Working Families line, in this Southern Tier and western New York district. New York allows fusion voting. The 2026 elections use the congressional map enacted on February 28, 2024. Roster from the New York qualifying lists as reported by Politics1 and Wikipedia. Neither candidate is listed with arguments for or against here: no published criticism of either candidate by name from someone opposing them could be found, and setting out a case against one and not the other would tilt the page.
This is one contest on a longer ballot
A New York ballot also carries state legislative districts, county offices, judicial seats and often local questions — and which of them you vote on is decided by your street address, not your city or ZIP code.
Your ballot is determined by your election authority, not by us. Verify your registration, precinct, and sample ballot at New York State Board of Elections.