Suozzi's win in CD3 shows that candidates matter

Thomas Suozzi’s resounding win Tuesday was a victory for the often-forgotten ideal of bipartisanship in Congress. It conveys a strong national message that voters in 2024 want discernible results, not angry rhetoric, in dealing with America’s problems.

With a seriousness of purpose and campaign skills borne of his long public service, the 61-year-old moderate Democrat ran an exemplary campaign against his GOP opponent, Mazi Melesa Pilip, in the Third Congressional District’s special election. He will be sworn in Feb. 28 to serve out the remaining term of George Santos, who was expelled in December, and finally provide representation to the residents of the Nassau-Queens district.

During Suozzi’s campaign, he candidly addressed the politically explosive issue of migrants flooding our borders, without appealing to extremes of either party. He rightly criticized House Republicans, whom Pilip cheered, for rejecting a compromise bill that would have gone a long way toward fixing our broken immigration system.

Suozzi, who served the Third District for six years until 2022, had the credentials to make his case. He had previously worked on immigration reform with former Rep. Peter King, a GOP stalwart and fellow Long Islander, offering a 2019 bipartisan proposal they called “a grand compromise.” The measure failed in Congress. But the effort allowed Suozzi to show he has been committed to finding solutions to this national crisis for a long time, rather than exploiting it for political purposes. His approach clearly resonated with Long Islanders. It’s a playbook other House members should follow.

During their only televised debate, Suozzi’s clear and informed understanding of vitally important issues — from foreign policy to local taxes and the environment — was in sharp contrast to the inexperienced Pilip, who provided fuzzy or simplistic answers to questions about her policy views or any plan of action. Candidate quality matters.

Suozzi must now make good on his promise to work across the aisle with Republicans to get things done. It won’t be easy. On the day of his election, the other three members of Long Island’s congressional delegation seemed tone deaf to the bipartisan message sent by voters. Reps. Nick LaLota, Anthony D’Esposito and Andrew Garbarino joined their fellow House Republicans in impeaching U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on groundless allegations. This futile exercise — the Senate will dismiss the charges — in undermining the nation’s top immigration officer during this unprecedented flow of migrants doesn’t make sense, except to those who want to score points for Donald Trump’s presidential campaign rather than fix the border problem.

The new four-member delegation of Long Islanders, along with other New York representatives, could hold significant sway in the House. They should seize that opportunity — together. Come November, as Tuesday’s results suggest, voters will be looking for those willing to solve problems rather than continue an endless blame game.