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Josh Riley
American lawyer and politician (born 1981) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Joshua Paul Riley (born January 21, 1981) is an American politician and lawyer who has served as the U.S. Representative for New York's 19th congressional district since 2025. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously worked as a policy analyst at the U.S. Department of Labor and as counsel on the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee. His district covers the southeastern part of Upstate New York, which includes rural areas and the cities of Ithaca and Binghamton.
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Early life and education
Joshua Paul Riley was born on January 21, 1981,[1][2] in Endicott, New York, to Paul and Barbara Riley.[3][4] He graduated from Union-Endicott High School in 1999 and earned a bachelor's degree in government and economics from the College of William & Mary in 2003.[5][6][7]
During college, Riley worked as an aide to U.S. Representative Maurice Hinchey, whom he credited with inspiring his interest in public service.[8] After graduating, he worked as a policy analyst at the United States Department of Labor, focusing on unemployment and trade adjustment programs.[8]
In 2004, Riley enrolled at Harvard Law School, where he worked as a Heyman Fellow on the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.[7][6] He also volunteered for a legal aid clinic to assist victims of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans.[3] He graduated with a Juris Doctor in 2007 and was presented the Dean's Award for Community Leadership from then-Dean of Harvard Law School and current U.S. Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan.[3][7]
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Legal career
After law school, Riley worked as an associate in the law firm of Boies Schiller Flexner for two years.[7] He then clerked for Judge Kim McLane Wardlaw of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in California.[7][3] From 2011 to 2014, he served as general counsel to Senator Al Franken on the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee.[5][9] Riley later returned to Boies Schiller Flexner, where he became a partner and remained until 2021.[5] He then worked as a partner at Jenner & Block.[5]
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U.S. House of Representatives
Summarize
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Elections
2022
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In November 2021, Riley declared his candidacy for Congress in New York's 22nd congressional district, challenging incumbent Republican U.S. Representative Claudia Tenney.[10] Due to redistricting, redrawing of the map by a court-appointed special master, and U.S. Representative Antonio Delgado resigning to become the Lieutenant Governor of New York, Riley ended up running in the new 19th congressional district.[11]
The old 19th district was represented by Pat Ryan, a Democrat, who won the August special election to succeed Delgado but ran in the new New York's 18th congressional district in the November general election due to redistricting.[12] The 18th district became vacant when incumbent U.S. Representative Sean Patrick Maloney decided to run in the neighboring 17th congressional district after redistricting, which forced out U.S. Representative Mondaire Jones, the incumbent of the 17th district.[13]
Riley defeated Dutchess County businesswoman Jamie Cheney in the Democratic primary and faced Republican nominee and Dutchess County executive Marc Molinaro in the general election.[14] Molinaro lost the August special election to Pat Ryan for the old 19th district, but was on the ballot again in November for the new 19th district.[14] Molinaro defeated Riley in the general election.[15]
2024
In November 2024, Riley was the Democratic nominee in a rematch against incumbent Republican Representative Marc Molinaro for New York's 19th congressional district.[16][17] He won with 51.1% of the vote to Molinaro’s 48.8%,[18] and contributed to a broader Democratic win in New York state, where the party flipped three House seats.[19]
Tenure
Riley was sworn into office on January 3, 2025, and was assigned to the House Committees on Agriculture and on Science, Space, and Technology.[1] The following month, he introduced his first bill – a bipartisan measure to update the Department of Energy’s Weatherization Assistance Program by raising funding caps and broadening eligibility for low-income households.[20]
Amid an ongoing avian flu outbreak in New York state, Riley introduced bipartisan legislation to expand financial aid to all poultry producers within affected control zones, with the aim to support family farms, contain the virus, and lower grocery costs for consumers.[21] He subsequently cosponsored the Lowering Egg Prices Act, a bipartisan bill to ease federal regulations that do not distinguish between fresh and pasteurized eggs, which Riley says contributes to the annual waste of 400 million otherwise usable eggs.[22]
Committee assignments
For the 119th Congress:[23]
Caucus memberships
Riley's caucus memberships include:[1]
- Future Forum
- New Democrat Coalition
- Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition
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Personal life
Riley lives in Ithaca, New York, with his wife, Monica Kohli, a strategy consultant.[1] They married in Washington, D.C., in 2016 and have two sons.[24][3]
Electoral history
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References
External links
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