Former CNN senior political analyst and host John Avlon has filed to run for Congress just two weeks after revealing his departure from the struggling news network.
He will go before voters as a Democrat in New York’s 1st Congressional District, according to Federal Election Commission (FEC) fillings as seen and reported by The Hill.
The decision by Avlon, the former editor-in-chief of The Daily Beast, to run for the lower chamber comes after he announced on Feb. 8 he was looking beyond CNN, a network he joined in 2010 before becoming a fulltime employee in 2018.
Avlon made his intentions clear on social media, saying Donald Trump was his main target:
It's official: I'm running for Congress in #NY01 because there's too much at stake for the country & community I love. Long Island families deserve someone who fights for their values, not Trump's. It's time for us all to get off the sidelines. Join Me. https://t.co/fMu8RdLyBL pic.twitter.com/RHWAam8yif
— John Avlon (@JohnAvlon) February 21, 2024
This is not the first time Avlon has turned his sights on Trump.
In November, 2020, he said on “OutFront” that Trump was “unwell” and “delusional” for claiming he won the 2020 presidential election, as Breitbart News reported.
In 2022 he reacted to the Republican National Committee voting to withdraw from the Commission on Presidential Debates.
According to Avlon, the withdrawal was “a big deal” and “another blow to our democracy.”
How can you know for sure that the RNC withdrawing from the Debate Commission to outstanding news for conservatives? Answer… https://t.co/H3TdcrjV0x
— Breitbart News (@BreitbartNews) April 15, 2022
The Hill report details Avlon will be running against former state Senator James Gaughran and former administrative law judge in New York City Craig Herskowitz who also worked for former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s administration.
Organic chemist Nancy Goroff is also running in the primary after losing to Zeldin in 2020 by 11 points.
New York’s 1st Congressional District covers the eastern area of Long Island and Suffolk County and is considered a purple swing seat.
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