Good morning subscribers. ☕ This is your Tuesday, June 25, Rye Record newsletter — Election Edition.

Cast your ballots! It’s Election Day and in-person voting is already underway. The polls opened at 6 a.m. and will remain open until 9 p.m. Voters can identify their polling place by using this link to the Westchester County Board of Elections.

It’s judgment day for Jamaal Bowman. Will the two-term progressive lawmaker live to see another day in Congress? The embattled incumbent has been pushed to the brink in the NY-16 campaign fending off a well-financed challenge from popular Westchester County Executive George Latimer, a Rye resident with a political career spanning nearly 40 years.

The rivals have sparred over everything from the war in Gaza to race relations in the Westchester-Bronx district — and it’s gotten ugly at times.

Both candidates were in Mount Vernon Monday hoping to connect with voters on the eve of the election. Bowman went big, holding a rally with “Squad” members AOC and Ayanna Presley. But he spoke the loudest on Saturday at a voter turnout event in the South Bronx, where he told attendees Latimer “supports genocide” and along with AIPAC — the pro-Israel lobbying group fueling his campaign — is “destroying our democracy.”

Latimer joined faith leaders in Mount Vernon Monday to denounce Bowman’s rhetoric, saying his opponent has bought into what has happened in Washington, where it’s “more about the theater of conflict than it is finding common ground.”

The heated race has been one to watch, bringing unprecedented spending to a congressional contest — the most money to ever finance a House primary.

New York Magazine has labeled Bowman “the most endangered Democrat in America.” But if he’s able to survive Tuesday, it would likely signal the 48 year old from Yonkers is here to stay.

For Latimer, a win would mark a remarkable rise in politics, having never lost an election dating back to his first win in 1987. A loss here though would likely cripple any prospects of higher office for the 70 year old.

-Christian Falcone

➡️ Follow The Record, @ryerecordnews, on our social media channels and at ryerecord.com for continuing coverage of the congressional race. 💻📱

In other news

Rye High School is losing both of its top administrators following the resignations of Principal Suzanne Short and Assistant Principal William Meyer. Schools Supt. Eric Byrne announced the shocking news in a Sunday night email.

A young boy and his mother were fatally struck by a vehicle while walking to school in Mamaroneck on Thursday. The boy was pronounced dead at the scene. The mother, who was transported to an area hospital, died from her injuries Thursday afternoon, police said.

What we’re hearing: A vehicle was stolen from a homeowner’s driveway in the area of Dearborn Avenue at roughly 3 a.m. last Friday. Police say the vehicle was left unlocked with the key inside. The Police Department is urging residents to remove their valuables and lock their car doors.

Con Edison is slated to work on Sanford Street, June 24-28, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Veolia, the water management company, is scheduled for work on Forest and Apawamis avenues, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on June 24-26.

Weather

Today’s Weather Channel local forecast calls for sunny skies in Rye with a high of 89 degrees and a UV Index of 9.☀️ Check out the forecast for the rest of the week here.

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Voters Head To the Polls For Historic NY-16 Democratic Primary

Democratic voters from Co-op City in the Bronx to Rye will be heading to the polls Tuesday to decide the nation’s most closely watched, and historically expensive, House primary.

Upset by two-term incumbent Jamaal Bowman’s harsh criticism of Israel after the Oct. 7 attack, Westchester Jewish leaders were among those who recruited County Executive George Latimer last fall to challenge Bowman for his 16th Congressional District seat.  

Both campaigns have emphasized that the office is primarily about local representation not foreign policy, but pro-Israel political action committees have made the candidates’ contrasting positions on the war in Gaza a centerpiece of the contest.

-by David Hessekiel

PACs Spending Record Money to Influence Congressional Race

Wonder why you haven’t been able to turn on your TV or look at your phone or computer the last few months without being subjected to a campaign ad?  

Outside groups have spent more than $13.8 million on media placements to influence the New York 16th Congressional District Democratic primary, according to Federal Election Commission filings.

In total, independent groups have spent nearly $16.7 million on this race. Add to that the $10 million that has been contributed directly to the candidates and you see why this race has been dubbed the most expensive primary in the nation.

-by David Hessekiel