# NY-04 — 2026 U.S. House Race > [!success] Primary result — June 23, 2026 > **Jeanine Driscoll (R) 90.8%** (12,892) over Marvin Williams 8.9% (1,258). Driscoll is Receiver of Taxes for the Town of Hempstead — Nassau County's largest township and the population center of the district. **[[Laura Gillen]] (D)** is the Democratic nominee. > November: **Gillen vs. Driscoll**. Cook: **Lean Democratic** (September 11, 2026). > > Worth noting for future recon: Driscoll appeared on essentially none of the pre-primary candidate lists, then won with 91%. Nassau's Republican organization can consolidate behind a county officeholder late, which means pre-filing lists are a poor guide to this district. > [!warning] One gap > Whether the Democratic primary was contested or cancelled outright is **unconfirmed** — Wikipedia carries a Republican results table and no Democratic one, and the challengers who had filed were disqualified or withdrew. Gillen is unambiguously the nominee; the mechanism is not documented here. ## Snapshot — Gillen defends; D'Esposito rematch gated by Hatch Act Freshman Democrat **[[Laura Gillen]]** defends a South Shore Nassau County seat she flipped in 2024, in what is expected to be a third straight matchup against Republican **[[Anthony D'Esposito]]** — except D'Esposito's entry is legally gated. He was confirmed as U.S. Department of Labor Inspector General in December 2025, and the Hatch Act bars an IG from running while in office; he would have to resign first, and as of the April 6 New York filing deadline he had not filed. The Democratic and Republican primaries are **June 23, 2026** (not yet held). Cook rates the seat **Lean Democratic**. **Key takeaway:** A district trending sharply right at the presidential level (Biden +15 in 2020 → Harris +1 in 2024) where the *House* race nonetheless leans Democratic on incumbency and a large Gillen cash advantage — with the marquee GOP challenger stuck behind an ethics/Hatch Act problem. ## Snapshot South Shore and central/southern Nassau County, Long Island (Hempstead, Freeport, Long Beach, Rockville Centre, Garden City, Valley Stream, Elmont, Merrick, Wantagh, Seaford, Oceanside, etc.). The presidential lean swung from Biden +15 (2020) to Harris +1 (2024). **[[Laura Gillen]]** (D) beat then-incumbent **[[Anthony D'Esposito]]** ~51% (≈8,600 votes / 2.3 points) in 2024, reversing his 2022 win over her. ## Incumbent **[[Laura Gillen]]** (D). Freshman; former Hempstead Town Supervisor. Runs as a suburban affordability/SALT-focused centrist, secured Nassau community-project funding, and has publicly distanced herself from NYC Mayor [[Zohran Mamdani]]. Effectively unopposed in the Democratic primary. ## Republican field **[[Anthony D'Esposito]]** (R) — former NYPD officer and one-term congressman (2023–2025), now DOL Inspector General; Nassau GOP calls him the "odds-on favorite," but he has not formally entered and faces a Hatch Act resignation requirement plus ethics complaints (Sen. Blumenthal, CREW). He also carries 2024 baggage over an alleged-mistress payroll report. In his absence, the filed GOP primary field includes Dennis McGrath, Brian Miller, and Marvin Suber-Williams (an earlier candidate, John DeGrace, withdrew). ## Ratings history | Outlet | Current | Prior | Shift | |---|---|---|---| | Cook Political Report | Lean Democratic | Toss Up | Moved to Lean D, Jan 2026; held April 2026 | | Sabato's Crystal Ball | Competitive (label unconfirmed) | — | — | | Inside Elections | Competitive (label unconfirmed) | — | — | **Context**: Cook upgraded Gillen to Lean Democratic in January 2026 on incumbency and her cash lead, despite the district's rightward presidential trend. ## Key dates - **June 23, 2026** — NY primary (D & R) — upcoming - **November 3, 2026** — General election ## Money - **Laura Gillen (D)**: $2,858,865 raised in 2025; **$2,190,282 cash on hand** as of Dec. 31, 2025 (Q1 2026 figures not yet indexed). - **Anthony D'Esposito (R)**: A dormant campaign committee reportedly took in ~$23,000 in 2025; he is not actively fundraising as a declared candidate. ## Intel notes - **Hatch Act overhang.** The expected marquee Long Island rematch is legally gated: D'Esposito must resign a Senate-confirmed IG post to run, an awkward maneuver already drawing ethics complaints. Watch for a resignation + filing. - **Presidential swing vs. incumbent strength.** Biden +15 → Harris +1 shows a GOP-trending top of ticket, yet Cook moved the House race toward Gillen on incumbency and cash. - **2026 NY governor coattails.** Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman is the presumptive GOP gubernatorial nominee vs. Gov. [[Kathy Hochul]]; Republicans expect Blakeman to carry NY-04 and lend down-ballot coattails. - **SALT / Mamdani framing.** Gillen's SALT focus and deliberate distancing from [[Zohran Mamdani]] signal a centrist defense in a high-tax suburban swing seat. ## Outside-money log — FEC Form 24 notices ### Receipt date 2026-10-08 — [[House Majority PAC]] $149,803.23 **[[House Majority PAC]]** (FEC **C00495028**, filing as `HMP`) disclosed **$149,803.23** in this district on **3 Schedule E lines** in a single Form 24 notice — **file 2018607**, `F24N`, received **2026-10-08T23:07:55**, expenditure date **2026-10-06**, election code `G2026`. | Direction | Candidate | Amount | Lines | |---|---|---|---| | oppose | [[Jeanine Driscoll]] | **$149,803.23** | 3 | The notice as a whole is **$21,914,974.25 across 146 lines covering 44 candidate positions in 19 states**, **98.59% of it negative**, with **[[Waterfront Strategies]]** placing **72.0%** of the money. The full document is recorded at [[House Majority PAC 21.9M House IE October 2026]]. HMP is defending [[Laura Gillen]] here by attacking the challenger; there is no support line in this district on the notice. 🔴 **This notice posted late on receipt date 2026-10-08.** It was filed 53 minutes before the receipt date closed. The document's aggregate column is not published here as a district total; the figure above is summed from the document's own lines. Source: `docquery.fec.gov/dcdev/posted/2018607.fec` ## Related KB entities - [[Laura Gillen]] — incumbent - [[Anthony D'Esposito]] — presumptive GOP challenger - [[Kathy Hochul]] — 2026 NY governor (environment) - [[Zohran Mamdani]] — NYC mayor (framing) - [[2026 House Races Hub]] — overview ## Sources - [Ballotpedia — NY-04 election, 2026](https://ballotpedia.org/New_York's_4th_Congressional_District_election,_2026) - [Spectrum News — Cook shifts NY House ratings (Jan 2026)](https://spectrumlocalnews.com/nys/central-ny/politics/2026/01/15/cook-political-report-shifts-n-y--house-2026-ratings) - [Spectrum News — Cook ratings unchanged (April 2026)](https://spectrumlocalnews.com/nys/central-ny/politics/2026/04/07/cook-political-report-n-y--house-2026-ratings-unchanged) - [Long Island Press — challengers emerge vs. Gillen](https://www.longislandpress.com/2026/04/07/several-candidates-emerge-to-challenge-incumbent-gillen/) - [Government Executive — D'Esposito IG / Hatch Act questions](https://www.govexec.com/oversight/2026/03/inspector-generals-reported-plan-run-congress-hatch-act-violation-lawmakers-and-ethics-orgs-say/412222/) - [Blumenthal — calls for D'Esposito Hatch Act investigation](https://www.blumenthal.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/blumenthal-calls-for-investigation-into-anthony-desposito-for-potential-hatch-act) - [Long Island Press — Gillen campaign funds](https://www.longislandpress.com/2026/02/10/suozzi-gillen-campaign-funds/)