# Mike Lawler

Michael Vincent Lawler (born September 9, 1986) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for New York's 17th congressional district since 2023. From 2021 to 2022, he was a Republican member of the New York State Assembly from the 97th district in Rockland County.

## Early life and education

Lawler was born and raised in Suffern, New York. He graduated from Suffern High School.
Lawler earned his Bachelor of Science degree in accounting and finance from Manhattan College in 2009 and was named valedictorian of his graduating class. In 2024, Lawler received an honorary doctorate from Touro University.
On October 3, 2024, The New York Times discovered resurfaced photos of Lawler wearing a Michael Jackson costume that included blackface in 2006 at a Manhattan College Halloween party. In response, Lawler said that his costume was intended to be "truly the sincerest form of flattery, a genuine homage to my musical hero since I was a little kid trying to moonwalk through my mom's kitchen. The ugly practice of blackface was the furthest thing from my mind." It was also reported that in 2005, J. Randy Taraborrelli, a Michael Jackson biographer who helped get Lawler into the courtroom for Jackson's trial, recalled that Lawler, then a senior in high school and "young fan" of Jackson had been "so disgusted" by testimony against Jackson "that he couldn't help but mutter something derogatory under his breath". Lawler was later removed from the courtroom.

## Career

Lawler co-founded the political communications firm Checkmate Strategies in 2018. He previously worked in the Westchester County Executive's Office as an advisor to Rob Astorino and as executive director of the New York State Republican Party. He also previously served as deputy town supervisor of Orangetown, New York. Additionally, Lawler served as a Republican convention delegate for Donald Trump in 2016.
Lawler was elected to the New York State Assembly in 2020 for a two-year term, defeating Democratic incumbent Ellen Jaffee.

## U.S. House of Representatives
### Elections
#### 2022

Lawler was the Republican nominee in the 2022 general election in New York's 17th congressional district, having won the August 2022 primary. He narrowly defeated Democratic incumbent and DCCC chair Sean Patrick Maloney in the November general election.

#### 2024

On November 5, 2024, Lawler was re-elected to the United States House of Representatives in the 17th Congressional district of New York, besting his opponent, Democratic nominee Mondaire Jones, by approximately seven percentage points.
The New York Times said Lawler was "openly entertaining a bid for governor in 2026" while running for re-election to Congress.

### Tenure

On January 4, 2023, Lawler called then-newly sworn Representative George Santos's conduct "embarrassing and unbecoming" and "certainly a distraction". On January 12, he called for Santos to resign.
Lawler voted for Kevin McCarthy in the 2023 Speaker of the United States House of Representatives election. McCarthy was unable to win the speakership on the first 14 ballots. Lawler said of the matter, "It's time for everybody to unify. It's time for everybody to move forward because the reality is the American people didn't elect us to fight over rules."
On January 9, Lawler voted in favor of the House rules package. Afterward, he gave his first House speech, in favor of a bill that would defund the IRS of the money allocated in the Inflation Reduction Act.
Lawler was one of five Republicans to vote against the Parents' Bill of Rights in March 2023, and the only Republican not part of the Freedom Caucus to vote against it. He co-sponsored the bill, but said he decided not to vote for it after an unspecified amendment "went too far".
On June 21, Lawler voted with 20 other House Republicans to block the censure of Rep. Adam Schiff.
On July 6, 2023, Lawler introduced H.R.4493 the District of Columbia One Vote One Choice Act to prohibit Washington, D.C., from adopting ranked-choice voting. Representatives Claudia Tenney (R-NY-24) and Chuck Edwards (R-NC-11) were the only cosponsors.
For much of 2023, Lawler had a policy of banning television news cameras from his town hall meetings; he rescinded the ban in early 2024.

### Caucus memberships

* Climate Solutions Caucus
* Republican Main Street Partnership

### Committee assignments

* Committee on Financial Services
** Subcommittee on Capital Markets
* Committee on Foreign Affairs

## Political positions

Lawler is a moderate Republican politician.
In 2024, Lawler was rated as the fourth most bipartisan member of the U.S. House during the 118th United States Congress in the Bipartisan Index created by The Lugar Center and the McCourt School of Public Policy.

### Abortion

Lawler opposes a federal ban on abortion. He is pro-life except in cases of rape, incest, or if the mother's life is at risk.

### Congestion pricing

In 2023, Lawler opposed a plan by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to enact congestion pricing in Manhattan, New York City, one of the most traffic congested areas of the world. The plan would charge most cars $15 per day to drive in Manhattan below 60th Street. Lawler said that the congestion pricing plan was not intended to reduce congestion, but was instead an "outrageous cash grab". In 2024, he asked president-elect Donald Trump to kill the congestion pricing plan once he gets into office.

### LGBT rights

Lawler stated on Twitter in December 2022 that he would have voted to pass the Respect for Marriage Act if he was in office at the time.

### 2024 presidential election

Lawler voted for Trump in the 2024 Republican primary in New York.
Lawler was one of six Republicans to sign a bipartisan letter in which they pledged to respect the results of the 2024 presidential election.

## Personal life

Lawler lives in Pearl River with his wife, Doina, and their two daughters.
Lawler is Catholic. He is of Irish and Italian descent.

## Electoral history

New York State Assembly District 97, General Election 2020 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Republican | Mike Lawler | 26,527 | 46.27 | +17.91 |
| | Conservative | Mike Lawler | 2,697 | 4.70 |
| | Independence | Mike Lawler | 315 | 0.55 |
| | SAM | Mike Lawler | 397 | 0.69 |
| | Total | Mike Lawler | 29,936 | 52.22 |
| | Democratic | Ellen Jaffee | 27,359 | 47.72 | −17.9 |
| | Total | Ellen Jaffee (incumbent) | 27,359 | 47.72 |
| | Write-in | Write-in | 35 | 0.06 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 57,330 | 100.0 |
| | Republican gain from Democratic | Republican gain from Democratic | Swing | +35.81 | |
New York's 17th congressional district, Primary Election 2022 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Mike Lawler | 11,603 | 75.8 |
| | Republican | William Faulkner | 1,772 | 11.6 |
| | Republican | Charles Falciglia | 1,310 | 8.6 |
| | Republican | Shoshana David | 444 | 2.9 |
| | Republican | Jack Schrepel | 176 | 1.1 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 15,305 | 100.0 |
New York's 17th congressional district, General Election 2022 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Sean Patrick Maloney | 130,999 | 45.6 |
| | Working Families | Sean Patrick Maloney | 8,083 | 2.8 |
| | Total | Sean Patrick Maloney (Incumbent) | 139,082 | 48.5 |
| | Republican | Mike Lawler | 124,148 | 43.3 |
| | Conservative | Mike Lawler | 17,573 | 6.1 |
| | Total | Mike Lawler | 141,721 | 49.4 |
| | Write-in | Write-in | 5,885 | 2.0 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 286,688 | 100.0 |
| | Republican gain from Democratic | Republican gain from Democratic | Republican gain from Democratic | Republican gain from Democratic |
New York's 17th congressional district, General Election 2024 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Mike Lawler | 180,924 | 47.7% |
| | Conservative | Mike Lawler | 16,921 | 4.5% |
| | Total | Mike Lawler (incumbent) | 197,845 | 52.2% |
| | Democratic | Mondaire Jones | 173,899 | 45.9% |
| | Working Families | Anthony Frascone | 7,530 | 2.0% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 379,274 | 100.0% |
| | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold | Republican hold |