Mondaire Jones faces mystery candidate in Working Families Party primary Tuesday

Former U.S. Rep. Mondaire Jones’ strategy to return to Congress in the 17th district includes winning votes on the left-leaning Working Families Party line in November.

But that strategy to defeat Rep. Mike Lawler, R-Pearl River, depends on securing the line in Tuesday’s primary against a Rockland County opponent, Anthony Frascone, who has done little campaigning, according to Working Families Party spokesman Ravi Mangla.

Mangla said he has yet to hear that Frascone has reached out to party members.

“Clearly, Frascone, or candidates like him, are obfuscating their intentions,” he said. “They are not straight-forward. They are not aligned with the party and haven’t engaged with our members or membership. It’s meant to deceive voters and not engage authentically with the process.”

A man who picked up the phone associated with Frascone hung up when contacted Thursday.

Meanwhile, the Lawler campaign has sent out mailings highlighting Jones’ endorsement of Westchester County Executive George Latimer in Latimer's bid to oust Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-Yonkers.

Jones has the Working Families Party's support in the 17th Congressional District, and Bowman has its endorsement in the 16th.

More: Mondaire Jones outraises U.S. Rep. Mike Lawler by 2-to-1 in first quarter of 2024

Jones’ campaign spokeswoman Shannon Geison maintained that Frascone’s bid to grab the Working Family Party line was orchestrated by Rockland Republicans who back Lawler.

“MAGA Republicans are trying to steal the Working Families Party line in order to elect Mike Lawler,” said Geison. “They recruited a guy who was a registered Republican for years. We can’t let them steal the line. Mondaire is proud to be the Working Families Party-endorsed candidate and will fight to stop Republicans like Congressman Lawler from banning abortion, raising prescription drug costs, cutting Social Security and Medicare, and giving more tax cuts to billionaires.”

Rockland Republican Chairman Lawrence Garvey did not return a phone message seeking comment.

GOP mailings highlight Jones' endorsement of Latimer

One recent mailing from Lawler’s campaign, which highlights Jones’ endorsement of Latimer, declares “Mondaire Jones threw Jamaal Bowman and the WFP under the bus!”

Lawler’s consultant, Chris Russell, said the campaign mailing highlighted Democratic pushback on Jones’ endorsement, and pushback from progressive Congressional Democrats who back Bowman.

“Mondaire Jones is a phony and a fraud and Hudson Valley voters deserve to know all the gory details,” said Russell. “After fleecing his campaign donors to pay himself a salary and selling out his friends and principles in a craven attempt to hide his radical record of defunding the police and embracing socialism, did he expect his opponent not to make sure people were told all about it?”

Geison said Federal Election Commission rules allow candidates to draw a salary from their campaign committees, which gives working and middle-income candidates the ability to campaign. The campaign pay can't exceed 50% of what a member of Congress earns, according to FEC regulations.

More: Mike Lawler brings $2M to Mahopac, gets thank you sign on town land in election year

Frascone, a member of the Working Families Party since 2013, was approved for the ballot after filing enough petition signatures. The Working Families Party’s state committee voted to allow Jones, a registered Democrat, to run on the party’s line.

While state records show there are only 1,674 Working Families Party members in the 17^th District, candidates can pull a few percentage points on the line in the general election, which could be the difference in a close election. Lawler ousted Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney, D-Cold Spring, by just 1,820 votes.

Sign up for Wilson's weekly newsletter for insights into his Tax Watch columns.

David McKay Wilson writes about tax issues and government accountability. Follow him on Twitter @davidmckay415 or email him at dwilson3@lohud.com.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Mondaire Jones faces mystery candidate in Working Families primary