Politics & Government

Rice to Run for McCarthy's Seat in Congress

Nassau DA to run for Congress in Fourth District after McCarthy's retirement.

Kathleen Rice plans to run for Congress after Rep. Carolyn McCarthy announced her retirement, reported Newsday.

The Nassau County District Attorney announced Wednesday that she will seek election to the Fourth District following McCarthy's departure.

"Carolyn has convinced me that when you get to Washington, you can get involved in as many issues that are relevant to your constituents," Rice told Newsday, saying the office doesn't require a representative to be "pigeonholed" by their past.

Rice said if elected, she would work to continue McCarthy's legacy of fighting gun violence in addition to taking on other issues, like "immigration reform, human sex trafficking, and small-business aid."

McCarthy has thrown her full support behind the nine-year DA with the belief she will continue her progress while carving her own path in Congress.

"When you love the job you have, you want to see someone come in and continue the work," McCarthy told Newsday. "Kathleen is going to take her own path; she'll find what interests she'll go with, but I also know she's passionate about reducing gun violence from her years being the DA."

Citing her battle with lung cancer, McCarthy announced she would end her nearly two-decade command of the Fourth District and would not run for reelection. McCarthy revealed her diagnosis to the public in June.

“The most important goal for any elected official is to help make residents’ lives better than they were, and as I enter my last year in office, I hope that together we continue to achieve that goal," she said earlier this month.

In December, McCarthy marked the 20th anniversary of the Long Island Railroad massacre, where gunman Colin Ferguson opened fire on a train and killed six people. Her husband, Dennis, was among the people who died and her son, Kevin, was wounded in the shooting.

McCarthy responded to the tragedy by campaigning for stricter gun control and in 1996, she left her career in nursing when she was elected to Congress in a landslide against Republican Dan Frisa.

Gun control, healthcare, education, special education, and children's healthcare have topped McCarthy's agenda in her 17 years of political service.

Rice, a Garden City native, served as assistant district attorney in Brooklyn and assistant U.S. attorney in Philadephia before her election to Nassau DA in 2005. She defeated 31-year incumbent Denis Dillon.

Since her election, Rice has championed tougher DWI patrols and said "plea bargaining is down, [with] more violent felons and gang members . . . going to jail," according to Newsday.


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