Progressives isolate Mondaire Jones for endorsing against one of their own

TARRYTOWN, New York — Lefties are livid at Mondaire Jones.

The Democrat’s endorsement of an AIPAC-backed challenger over his progressive former House colleague Tuesday left many in the left wing of their party feeling angry and betrayed.

And as Jones attempts a congressional comeback in what’s shaping up to be a brutal battle farther north, his one-time allies decried his move as just another example of political expediency.

“He positioned himself as Squad-adjacent during his time in Congress,” Rep. Cori Bush, a member of the progressive caucus who hails from Missouri, said in an interview. “And then now, when it is beneficial to him, he will go against someone who actually was there for him.”

Jones officially backed George Latimer’s bid to unseat Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.), another Squad member, at a news conference Tuesday just north of New York City. Jones, appearing alongside Latimer and other local officials, said he made the decision “to stand up for my Jewish constituents, because Representative Bowman and I have very different views on Israel.”

His backing of the more moderate Latimer, the Westchester County executive who has the support of the influential pro-Israel AIPAC, was made public a day earlier in the New York Times, stunning left-leaning elected officials, activists and staff who once worked alongside Jones.

In a universe where political calculations and transactional relationships are the norm, Jones’ move from the Hudson Valley to New York City to run for an open seat in 2022 — and back again to challenge Republican Rep. Mike Lawler this year — could be forgiven, they said. But his endorsement of Latimer — adding to the forces that may be successful in toppling Bowman this month — went too far, they said.

Bowman and Jones, after all, had entered Congress together in 2021 as Black freshman with progressive credentials.

Lefties once aligned with Jones now want those credentials revoked. Some told POLITICO they felt personally betrayed, others called him a sellout and many speculated he likely believes the endorsement could boost him among pro-Israel voters in November.

“Mondaire Jones and George Latimer are a great match, both are clearly willing to compromise on core democratic values to do the bidding of AIPAC’s Republican megadonors and use Jamaal Bowman as a stepping stone for their self-interested political aspirations,” Justice Democrats spokesperson Usamah Andrabi said in a statement.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Black Voters Matter co-founder Cliff Albright and others weighed in — some to buoy Bowman, others to blast Jones.

After his Latimer campaign event Tuesday, the former House member gave it right back to Squad members who were seething at him.

“It is the height of hypocrisy that people who would push agendas wholly unrepresentative of the 16th Congressional District would accuse someone else of being politically opportunistic,” Jones told POLITICO.

Meanwhile, the left-leaning New York Working Families Party that has endorsed both Bowman and Jones in their respective races found itself in an unwelcome bind: how to champion one when the other had turned against him. For now, its public response is to downplay the rift and focus on the primary where AIPAC’s super PAC, the United Democracy Project, has spent $10 million for Latimer and against Bowman.

“We don’t give the endorsement much weight. Voters know Jamaal has been one of the strongest champions in Congress for our public schools and climate,” state WFP spokesperson Ravi Mangla said in a statement.

Jones’ endorsement of Latimer could help the challenger this month with left-leaning and Black voters. And in turn, it could help Jones in November with the more centrist voters, including Jewish New Yorkers, as he seeks to unseat Lawler, a regular presence on cable TV news and at events keeping the spotlight on the Oct. 7 hostages.

In suburban Tarrytown alongside Latimer, Jones said the endorsement wasn’t meant to disparage Bowman, though he went on to discuss how Bowman’s criticism of Israel’s military offensive in Gaza isn’t a good fit for the district.

“My decision to endorse in this race is based on my moral compass and knowing that we have to go in a different direction in the Hudson Valley,” Jones added in the interview afterward. “The fact is: I am also responding to the very real pain, anxiety and fear that my Jewish constituents have been expressing to me since Oct. 7.”

Jones was all but pushed out of office in 2022 by the redistricting process, and Bowman stood with him in alleging that establishment Democrats like then-Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney were sidelining Black leaders. Jones moved to Brooklyn to run for the open House seat that Dan Goldman won. And he’s now in the lower Hudson Valley to face off against Lawler, who jumped at the chance to dig at him for “his willingness to throw his friend under the bus in the hope it will help him in his own race.”

Jones and Lawler’s most recent federal finance filings showed that they are neck and neck in campaign cash on hand.

Nicholas Wu contributed to this report.