A Republican businesswoman is seeking to topple two-term Democratic Rep. Pat Ryan in the Hudson Valley’s 18th House District.
Kingston native Jackie Auringer, 29, said she’s running because the community where she grew up is being hollowed out as families who can no longer afford to stay.
“The results speak for themselves—Pat Ryan has failed the Hudson Valley. He has been cowed by party bosses instead of standing up for local families,” said Auringer, a project manager and accountant at her family-run construction business, Urban Precast.
“As a woman who spent her life in construction,” she told The Post. “I know how to cut through the noise and get results. If we want to change Congress, we need to change who we send there.”
While working for her family business in Florida, she founded Palm Beach Conservatives and served as vice president of the Palm Beach Federated Republican Women.
She developed relationships with donors and activists nationwide that she claims will help fuel a competitive campaign against Riley.
Auringer will officially accept the nomination from Republican Party officials on Monday.
Ryan, 44, is an Army vet and West Point graduate who served as Ulster County executive before his election to Congress.
According to the Federal Election Commission, he has $2.5 million in cash in his campaign account.
The 18th Congressional district takes in Orange, Dutchess and parts of Ulster County.
The Cook Political Report’s analysts said Ryan is heavily favored to win, rating the 18th House District as “solid Democrat.”
He handily defeated Republican Alison Esposito, a retired NYPD deputy inspector, in 2024.
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