A customer walks into V.I. Pizza in Bayside, Queens (Credit: Jake Angelo).
In New York’s 3rd Congressional District, Democrats are turning to Italian-American identity in an effort to court white suburban voters this November.
On Sept. 8, New York Congressman Tom Suozzi (D) joined a “Paisans for Kamala” Zoom call, the latest in a series of virtual events held by Vice President Kamala Harris supporters, focused on specific identity groups. Suozzi, up for reelection this fall, was one Zoom square among the myriad Italian A-listers and politicians who participated. Actors Robert De Niro and Steve Buscemi, and House Speaker emerita Nancy Pelosi were some of the prominent names.
During his brief screen time, Suozzi promoted a moderate stance on immigration, one that supports border security while highlighting the benefits of immigration, citing his own family’s history. “My father was born in Italy and lived a great American success story,” Suozzi said.
The Congressman went on to acknowledge one of the Democrats’ vulnerabilities.
“We’ve lost a lot of Italian-Americans over the years from the ranks of the Democratic Party,” he said during his speech. “To bring them back, we’ve got to remind them of the values that Kamala Harris has. Those values are the same immigrant experience values that we value.”
Come November, Democrats are hoping to make inroads in the suburbs, seeking new ways to promote white voter turnout. Their challenge is twofold: updating their stance on immigration to address the border crisis, while appeasing their progressive base. Some of these strategies are taking Democrats to older, perhaps to what some would call antiquated, talking points.
Italian-Americans have not appeared as a formidable voting bloc since the New Deal era. The demographic helped to elect President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932, joining the big tent New Deal coalition and contributing to Democratic dominance in U.S. politics for two decades. But this Italian-American political influence has since atrophied.
The stakes are high in the 3rd Congressional District, which includes parts of Queens and Long Island, where over 55 percent of voters are white, according to 2022 Census data. Suozzi must win over a substantial proportion of these voters to win the election for himself and Harris. This task proves difficult as white suburban voters across the country have trended rightward over the past several years. And most of these voters in general tend to favor Republicans when it comes to immigration, a top issue for many this election cycle. Although Suozzi clinched the district seat in a special election in February by an 8-point margin, the district remains competitive, with pollsters deeming the seat potentially vulnerable to a Republican challenge.
Democratic political consultant Hank Sheinkopf thinks there is merit to Suozzi’s invocation of Italian identity. He cites the high number of white, Catholic, middle-class voters in the region, who Democrats have lost in previous years and who they must win over to reclaim the House. Sheinkopf believes that Democrats are effective in relating to voters by speaking on identity and must do so this election cycle if they hope to reclaim the House.
But not all constituents are convinced. Francesca Russo, a Bayside resident and an Italian-American, does not see merit in this focus on identity. “I don’t see how that really should have to do with the issues. It should do more with the topic at hand,” said Russo. The registered Independent is upset with the political climate, and platforming Italian-Americans has not motivated her to vote this November. “I’ve really just stayed away from politics since the last two elections because I’ve felt disillusioned. It’s not really about the people anymore.”
Other voters, like Melissa Hernandez, a bartender at an Italian restaurant in Bayside, find the strategy effective. “If you’re going to represent the community, even when you open a restaurant in this area, you need to be able to cater to the people in the area,” said Hernandez. “We still talk about migration stories here,” she said, reflecting on her own Puerto Rican and Salvadoran heritage.
It remains to be seen if this new, or rather old, strain of identity politics will prove effective in the upcoming election. With Election Day just over a month away, Suozzi and Democrats are taking a pragmatic approach to immigration policy, using all the tools in their playbook to sway opinion. As Suozzi stated at the Democratic National Convention last month in a pitch to Americans on his immigration stance, “Non ce sono rose senza spine,” or “There are no roses without thorns.”
About the author(s)
Jake Angelo is a freelance reporter and M.S. Candidate at Columbia Journalism School, covering local New York elections and politics.