Central New York voters have a clear choice to make by Nov. 3: send Democratic Rep. John Mannion back to Washington for a second term, or hand the seat to Kailee Buller, a Republican who quit a senior post in the Trump administration this year to come home and run. The race for New York's 22nd Congressional District, which stretches across Syracuse, Auburn, Cortland and Utica, has drawn national attention after President Donald Trump endorsed Buller in her bid to flip the seat.
Mannion, who won the district in 2024 after defeating Republican incumbent Brandon Williams according to The New York Times, is running with the backing of the Democratic and Working Families parties, while Buller carries the Republican and Conservative lines, as reported by the Cortland Standard. According to Spectrum News, Mannion has said the election is among the most consequential of their lifetimes, while Buller has said she sees herself as a dark-horse candidate within the margins to win the seat because voters want change, as detailed by Spectrum News.
Who Is Kailee Buller?
Buller, an Auburn native, announced her campaign as a Republican challenger, according to CNY Central. She previously served as a senior official with the U.S. Department of Agriculture under two presidential administrations, the station's report notes, and she resigned from a senior post in Trump's administration in March to run for Congress, per syracuse.com. Buller describes herself as a moderate Republican who would not join the far-right House Freedom Caucus if elected, the same account states.
Her campaign messaging centers on lowering costs, restoring public trust and delivering results for working families, per the same account. She has said she hears from voters most about high utility costs, food prices and housing availability. Spectrum News reports Buller has said she plans to ensure Central New York has influence when she is a leader, and that she wants the region to be a place her children can remain if they choose, describing the area's circumstances as a once-in-a-generation opportunity.
Where They Split on Immigration and Energy
Buller supports Trump's border security and immigration crackdown but has said enforcement operations in Minnesota were too aggressive and has called for more oversight of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, according to the syracuse.com report. That matters locally: federal immigration arrests in Onondaga County jumped fivefold during the first year of Trump's second term, and 74% of nearly 300 Syracuse-area arrests involved people without prior convictions or pending criminal charges, per the same report.
On energy, Buller favors an all-of-the-above strategy that includes expanded fossil fuel development alongside nuclear power and renewables, syracuse.com reports. Speaking on WRVO's Campbell Conversations, Buller said, “I support fast tracking state, local and federal nuclear. I support building the Constitution pipeline.” She has also said she supports Trump's decision to attack Iran because she believes the Iranian regime should not be allowed to develop a nuclear bomb, according to syracuse.com.
Common Ground on Health Care and Social Security
Despite their differences, Mannion and Buller agree on some of the district's biggest kitchen-table issues. Both want to improve the Affordable Care Act to provide better health coverage for Central New Yorkers, and neither would cut Social Security and Medicare benefits or raise the eligibility age, according to a syracuse.com breakdown of the race. Buller has said she won't support Republican efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act unless there is a viable replacement that guarantees access to health insurance, per the outlet's earlier report.
The two candidates diverge sharply on trade and taxes. Mannion opposes Trump's global tariffs, while Buller supports tariffs generally but says many of the import taxes are too broad and don't help U.S. businesses or consumers, the syracuse.com breakdown states. Mannion backs the American Affordability Act, while Buller supports making permanent the temporary tax cuts on tips, overtime and Social Security included in Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act, according to the same report.
Micron and the Region's Economic Stakes
Both candidates point to housing, education, energy, the environment and affordability as key regional issues, per Spectrum News. Mannion has said his work on Green CHIPS legislation helped bring Micron to the region as a semiconductor chip manufacturer, while Buller has said she wants training academies to match skills with anticipated needs and hopes other businesses will invest near the Micron site, according to the outlet.
Mannion has said he left a job he loved because of concerns about the United States' global status, economic stability and making upstate New York a priority, and that he is committed to bringing costs down for New Yorkers, per Spectrum News. He has said he would be honored to receive everyone's vote and continue representing the district. Buller, for her part, has said she is ready to tell voters what is needed to get the job done.
New York's general election takes place Nov. 3, with early voting running from Saturday, Oct. 24 through Sunday, Nov. 1, according to Spectrum News.
