Matt Putorti, a Democratic candidate for Congress in New York’s 21st District. (Photo provided)

It’s been over a year since Matthew F. Putorti first declared his campaign for Congress in New York’s 21st Congressional District, and with the primary election less than two months away, he said he’s as confident as ever in his chances to secure the Democratic nomination.

As he’s talked with voters and pushed his campaign forward, Putorti has long been the more progressive mainline candidate in the race, running proudly on Democratic principles. In an interview Monday, he said there are too many issues facing the average American today to do anything but propose radical change with the American everyman in mind.

“My candidacy is different,” he said. “I’m a gay Catholic man from rural America, I grew up in a town of about 4,000 people that my family has been in for generations, and I know we can make progress if we work together, if we fight like hell, because we don’t have a choice anymore.”

Putorti said the economy is the main concern on the minds of the people he speaks with, as prices for everyday goods skyrocket at historic rates. He said voters are asking for a government that takes bold action to correct economic turbulence and ultimately solve the deeper economic issues, like growing inequality between the rich and the poor.

Putorti supports raising taxes on high earners and corporations, and has talked about expanding social programs with that money, like Medicare and Social Security.

“The second thing people have been talking to me about, probably unsurprisingly, is the overturn of Roe and what that means for the future of women’s rights, and what it signals for the future of other rights that we have that are likely to be under attack, including LGBTQ rights,” he said.

Since the Supreme Court of the U.S. voted to overturn the Roe and Casey decisions that had established and reiterated the Constitutional right to an abortion, many states have moved further and used that decision to restrict healthcare access for transgender people under 18. The opinion of Justice Clarence Thomas stated that the court decisions that ended restrictions on same-sex sexual contact, same-sex marriage and contraception need to also be reconsidered and potentially overturned.

Putorti has spent years as a lawyer supporting LGBTQ causes. He has said he supports codifying the right to an abortion into law if elected to Congress, and has similarly pledged to protect LGBTQ rights if elected.

The third most prominent issue he said he’s heard about from voters is their desire to see an end to mass shootings in the U.S. Following a string of tragic mass shootings at a Tops grocery store in Buffalo, an elementary school in Texas, a Fourth of July parade in Illinios, and many other public places, public support for gun control laws has spiked, something Putorti said he’s seen here in the North Country as well.

“I’m proud to be the only candidate in this race who’s come out in favor of an assault weapons ban,” he said.

As he campaigns, Putorti is running for the Democratic nomination against Matt Castelli, a former CIA officer and counterterrorism official. Castelli recently established an independent line on the general election ballot, under the self-named “Moderate Party.” He said he believes there needs to be a coming-together of Democrats, Republicans and independents, a return to compromise and a foundation of facts.

Putorti has criticized Castelli for the move. He said it shows Castelli isn’t respecting the wishes of the Democrats he’s campaigning for support from, and said now isn’t the time for centrism.

“I don’t think this is the time for moderation,” Putorti said. “Our economy isn’t working for the middle class, women’s rights are under attack, and now they’re coming for LGBTQ rights. Our planet is on fire, the Jan. 6 hearings have shown us again that the threats to our democracy are growing, they aren’t going away, and children are being shot in school.”

He said he thinks Castelli is touting moderate policies in a bid to appeal to a broad voter base, and said he personally believes it’s better to stick with the party he believes represents his ideals.

“I’m a proud Democrat, I’ve always been a proud Democrat,” he said. “I’m running for this nomination of the party I believe best represents the values I will fight for in Congress, and I won’t moderate those beliefs just to try to win an election.”

With such a significant burden on voters minds, and many hot-button issues being fiercely, sometimes violently debated on the national stage, Americans are reporting less faith in the system than ever before. A recent poll from Siena College and the New York Times found that 58% of people believe the U.S. government needs major reform or complete overhaul. Republicans reported discontent mainly because they’ve lost faith in the voting process after years of false election fraud claims from Republican elected officials and former President Donald J. Trump. Democrats are discontent because, even as their party controls the White House and the Congress, Republican goals like the overturn of Roe have come to pass thanks to Republicans in statehouses and conservatives on the Supreme Court.

Putorti said he has seen that discontent with the system in the north country too.

“It’s in these moments that I tell people ‘we have to act’ the most,” he said. “We survived four years of the Trump presidency, we survived a pandemic that seems to have shifted to something we’re living with on a daily basis now, it hasn’t gone away. In these moments, we have to act, we have to fight.”

He said the people feeling dejected about the current state of the U.S. have to use their vote, and their voice, to force a change and protect what they view as important. He said he believes he represents the fresh, new and needed voice to make that change.

Castelli said he’s proud of his hometown roots in Whitehall, where he was born, raised and educated. He’s the only candidate, Democrat or Republican, who grew up in the north country. Even with his local roots and long campaign, Putorti has trailed his opponents in many measures.

He’s now the lowest earner in the race, with about $823,000 raised since he first declared his campaign in June of 2021. After an initially surprising fundraising push, with over $100,000 raised within the first 15 hours of his campaign, Castelli has overtaken him as the highest earning Democrat in the race. Meanwhile, Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, the incumbent Republican candidate, remains the highest earner overall by a factor of millions.

Castelli has also picked up wide support from Democratic party committees and chairpeople across the district, and has a significantly larger volunteer base than Putorti.

Still, Putorti said he’s confident in his campaign’s strength, with a still-sizeable campaign warchest, and his history growing up in the north country. He said he believes voters are tired of having people move to the district, having had little to no past living in the region beforehand, and running for Congress. Stefanik grew up in Albany, and Castelli grew up in Poughkeepsie.

“We need someone who actually cares about the district, and that’s the message that’s resonating with people and that’s why I know that we have great support across this district,” he said.

The primary election where Democrats in NY-21 will choose between Putorti and Castelli is scheduled for Aug. 23, with early voting opening on Aug. 12. The winner of that race will go on to oppose Stefanik in the general election scheduled for November, but with Castelli having secured a third-party line, it is possible that November’s general election will be a three-way race.