Democrat Alissa Ellman is calling on Republican Rep. Claudia Tenney to meet her on stage four times before Election Day, proposing that local media outlets, civic groups, colleges or community organizations host the face-offs across New York's 24th Congressional District. Tenney, who is seeking her third two-year term representing the district, has not said whether she will accept.
According to fltimes.com, Ellman wants Tenney to participate in four debates across the vast district, each one hosted by a different type of local institution. The outlet reported that Tenney's campaign did not respond to a request for comment on potential debates as of Friday morning, leaving the proposal unanswered for now.
Ellman arrives at this point after defeating Diana Kastenbaum in the June 23 Democratic primary, a contest she won decisively. Per Spectrum News, Ellman took 61.7% of the vote to Kastenbaum's 38.1% with roughly 80% of the estimated vote counted, setting up her general-election matchup against the incumbent.
A Veteran Turned Candidate Takes On an Eight-Year Incumbent
Ellman is a newcomer and a Democrat from the Genesee Valley, and her biography centers on military and federal service. She is an Army veteran who worked for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, serving as a file clerk at the Buffalo VA until 2025, when the same report from Spectrum News notes she was among 2,500 VA employees let go as part of Elon Musk-led DOGE cuts. The Rochester Beacon adds further detail to that service record, reporting that Ellman joined the Army at age 17 and was sent to Afghanistan in the early 2000s, according to Rochester Beacon.
Tenney, for her part, is a small business owner and lawyer who has served in Congress and is campaigning for reelection, having won the district's race in both 2022 and the 2024 general election. Voters will decide between the two candidates this November.
A District Built for Republicans
New York's 24th Congressional District covers all or part of 14 counties, a vast, mostly rural expanse that spans more than 7,000 square miles and is home to nearly 800,000 people. The Rochester Beacon's more precise figures put the district at over 7,200 square miles with an estimated population of 776,971, numbers that underscore just how much ground any debate schedule would need to cover. The electorate leans heavily Republican — Spectrum News has described it as one of, if not the most, Republican district in the state, and the New York Times reported that the Cook Political Report rated the primary-season race as Solidly Republican, with the primary winner expected to carry a strong advantage into November.
Median household income sits below $75,000 a year, and the Rochester Beacon puts it at $69,878 — lower than the $73,132 median in neighboring District 25 and well below the $82,095 statewide median. The economy is a major issue here, and the outlet has also pointed to health care as a central concern tied to the district's demographics and hospital funding pressures.
Candidates Spar Over Affordability and Canada
Ellman has focused on cost-of-living pressures, including affordability, energy costs and child care, per Spectrum News's earlier report on her primary win. Tenney has discussed small-business struggles and efforts to improve conditions.
Canada is a major economic neighbor to the district, where cross-border trade and tourism drive local economies. President Trump's decision to impose 50% tariffs on many Canadian products is reverberating across northern border districts, as ABC News has reported. That outlet noted New York's neighboring 21st District exported $1.1 billion in goods to Canada annually as of April 2026, illustrating how much is riding on trade policy for districts like Tenney's.
Whether Ellman's push for four debates leads to any actual meetings on stage remains unresolved, with Tenney's campaign yet to respond to the request. For now, voters across the 24th District's 14 counties are left watching whether the sitting congresswoman will accept the challenge from the Army veteran trying to unseat her.
