NEW YORK — Eighty-nine candidates filed to run for U.S. House seats in New York by the April 6, 2026, deadline. This group includes 59 Democrats and 30 Republicans, with candidates filing in both Republican and Democratic primaries across all 26 state congressional districts.
Twenty congressional primaries are contested in the state for 2026, consisting of 16 Democratic and four Republican primaries. Eight Democratic incumbents are competing in these contested primaries. The state recorded six contested primaries in 2024, 24 in 2022, and 23 in 2020. The state also had 14 contested primaries in 2018, 13 in 2016, and 10 in 2014.
Three congressional districts are open due to the retirements of Representatives Nydia Velazquez, Jerrold Nadler, and Elise Stefanik. Nine candidates, including eight Democrats and one Republican, are running for the open 12th Congressional District. In previous cycles, the state had zero open congressional districts in 2024, seven in 2022, four in 2020, one in 2018, four in 2016, and two in 2014.
The total of 89 candidates represents the third-highest number of U.S. House candidates in the state since 2014. The state's primary elections are scheduled for June 23, 2026. These elections are decided by plurality, meaning the candidate with the highest number of votes wins.
The state currently averages 3.4 candidates per congressional district. This compares to previous averages of 2.3 in 2024, 4.1 in 2022, 4.0 in 2020, 3.1 in 2018, 2.9 in 2016, and 2.0 in 2014. The state has 26 congressional districts for the 2022, 2024, and 2026 election cycles. From 2014 to 2020, the state had 27 congressional districts.