07-07-2025
Republican Smullen cracks the door for potential NY-21 run
Jul. 6—Assemblyman Robert J. Smullen, R-Meco, is not running for Congress in New York's 21st Congressional district.
At least not yet, but he's openly signaling that if the Republican nomination comes open, he wants a shot at it.
In an interview with the Watertown Daily Times on Wednesday, Smullen said he's not launching a campaign — but he's starting the process if the job does become free.
"What I'm here to say is that I am not running for the New York 21 Congressional district, I want to make sure that's very clear," he said. "But I am interested, if there's a possibility of an opening, of what the potential could be for that seat for someone like me."
Smullen said he believes his professional history, the fact that he's a native of the region and his legislative experience make him a prime candidate to represent NY-21 in Washington D.C.
He quietly put his name in the running when it appeared that current Congresswoman Elise M. Stefanik would resign the seat for a job with the Trump administration and trigger a special election this spring — but that never came.
"I thought then, as I thought now, that I would be a very strong, substantive candidate for the position, based on my experience," Smullen said.
Smullen is a retired 24-year Marine colonel, former executive director of the Hudson River-Black River Regulating District and has represented the 118th Assembly District covering the Mohawk Valley and Adirondacks since 2019. He has a masters of science from the National Defense University in resource management, and an extended national security background because of his military service.
Smullen isn't declaring a campaign yet because the job isn't open — Stefanik has not declared a campaign for Governor and has filed the necessary documents to run for NY-21 again. Declaring a campaign now, when it's not assured that Stefanik won't be seeking the seat for a seventh term, would mean he's running against the Congresswoman, which he does not want to do.
But if Stefanik does decide to run for governor, she'd no longer be able to run for Congress — and that would open up a possible primary for the Republican nomination.
Smullen said, if he were to run, his platform would revolve around job creation and economic development — and he would closely match the Republican party line.
"From my perspective as a current Assemblyman, and what I've worked on, it's all about jobs," he said. "It's about having good economic conditions for New York. It's about making sure that we do indeed close the border."
He said fentanyl and human trafficking across the northern border between New York and Canada is a major issue — something that President Donald J. Trump has blasted the country over and enforced high tariffs in an attempt to stop. CBP data shows that less than 1% of all fentanyl smuggled into the country is brought from Canada, which has its own raging fentanyl crisis, and recent immigration data shows that border officers are encountering hundreds fewer migrants attempting to cross into the U.S. from Canada since Trump took office.
In Congress, Smullen said he would be a conservative Republican, and said he would tack close to Trump.
"I'm proud to be a conservative Republican, that aligns with the people in the upstate area I represent, putting upstate first, and if I were in Washington D.C. I would be very close with the policies that President Trump has out there today," he said.
Loyalty to Trump is a must for the GOP candidate in NY-21; party officials look for it, Republican voters do as well and potential primary opponents use any perceived disagreement with the President as an attack line.
Smullen has worked with the Trump White House — he was appointed to the Presidents Commission on White House Fellows in Trump's first term. The White House Fellows program operates similar to internships, placing top applicants in year-long assignments with White House senior staff. Smullen himself was a White House fellow in the Bush administration.
On issues related to rural healthcare, Smullen said he would work to craft a program that sends more funding into rural hospitals — he said he's been working for years on a rural equity initiative at the state level that could be implemented nationally.
On Medicaid, which the Trump policy bill passed on Thursday aims to make massive cuts to, Smullen said he believes policy should be cognizant of how many rural Americans rely on Medicaid.
"About a third of New Yorkers are on Medicaid, so any consideration needs to absolutely take into account what the rural population looks like and how they're served by these programs," he said.
Smullen has served on the state Assembly Social Services Committee, giving him firsthand knowledge of how the state and federal governments support welfare programs. He said he specifically sees an issue with "benefits cliffs," that discourage people from seeking higher income because they'd lose access to more things like SNAP or Medicaid that are more valuable than the extra money.
"I've specifically advocated to change how benefits are calculated so there's not a benefits cliff where you all of the sudden fall off completely because your income is above a certain level," he said.
He said he would prefer to see fewer people rely on public benefits, and orient the programs more to pushing people up and out of poverty than supporting them through extended poverty.
Smullen has been signaling his potential run for a few weeks, speaking with media around upstate about the possibility. He said he's been speaking with voters and party officials, and will continue to do so.
"My goal is to converse with everybody about this, and my indicating interest is a way to facilitate that among people that are already elected officials, that vote in elections in the north country, and everyone in general so they can get to know me before the time comes," he said.
The candidate field for 2026 is somewhat hazy as of now — Blake Gendebien, who was picked by the Democratic party leadership to be their nominee in the special election that never came, has pledged to stick in the race but has not been very actively campaigning with over a year between now and the general election. Other potential Democratic candidates, including Paula Collins who ran against Stefanik in 2024 and Dylan Hewitt, who sought the nomination for the special election, have filed with the FEC and could potentially pursue the seat again.
On the Republican side, Amsterdam businessman Anthony Constantino once signaled he would run for the seat in 2026 if he wasn't the pick for the special election, and has kept up a public profile that could lead to a run in the primary next year, although he would likely not run against Stefanik if she remains in the seat. The the special, support coalesced around other candidates including state Senator Daniel G. Stec, R-Queensbury, Assemblyman Chris Tague, R-Schoharie and former GOP candidate in NY-21, Elizabeth "Liz" Joy.
Stefanik has signaled she would announce her bid for Governor shortly — if it does come, it's likely to spur a wave of announcements and interest in being her replacement.
