❓WHAT HAPPENED: George Conway, a former Republican and fanatical Trump critic, announced his run for Congress as a Democrat in New York’s 12th congressional district.
👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: George Conway, the former husband of Kellyanne Conway, and various other candidates running for the seat.
📍WHEN & WHERE: Conway announced his campaign on January 6, aiming to represent New York’s 12th congressional district.
💬KEY QUOTE: “I fought Trump publicly in every way I could, and I paid a price.” – George Conway
🎯IMPACT: Conway joins a crowded field for the Manhattan seat, with at least nine candidates vying for the position.
George Conway, a Trump-hating lawyer best known for his fanatical opposition to President Donald J. Trump, announced Tuesday that he is running for Congress as a Democrat in New York’s 12th congressional district. The Manhattan-based seat is open following the planned retirement of longtime Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) and has drawn a crowded field of candidates.
In a campaign announcement video, Conway framed his bid as a direct response to President Trump and the America First movement surrounding him. “I don’t like what [Trump] has done to our great country,” Conway said. “And now I’m running for Congress to take the fight directly back to him on your behalf, on the behalf of New Yorkers to whom I owe so much—to protect the fundamental rights and basic economic needs of all New Yorkers.”
Conway is a former Republican who rose to national prominence as part of the anti-Trump movement within the GOP. Early in Trump’s first term, Conway was reportedly considered for the role of U.S. solicitor general, as his then-wife, Kellyanne Conway, served as a senior adviser in the White House. Over time, George Conway became increasingly critical of Trump, while Kellyanne Conway remained an ally of the president.
He later helped found the disgraced Lincoln Project, an anti-Trump political organization that gained attention for aggressive advertising campaigns targeting Trump and his allies. Conway has repeatedly emphasized his public opposition to Trump as a defining feature of his political identity. “I fought Trump publicly in every way I could, and I paid a price,” he said in the video. “I’ll never regret standing up to Trump.”
Conway has a history of making crass attacks against President Trump and his MAGA allies, for instance by likening Turning Point USA (TPUSA) founder Charlie Kirk to a “[N]azi stormtrooper” following his assassination last year. Conway has also had a hand in lawfare against Trump, including the bizarre E. Jean Carroll case, with Carroll specifically crediting Conway for convincing her to take up the case when her book was not selling.
The Democratic primary for the 12th district includes several high-profile contenders, among them Jack Schlossberg, the grandson of President John F. Kennedy, and New York State Assembly members Alex Bores and Micah Lasher. The district is considered safely Democratic, making the primary the decisive contest.
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