Central New York native Roger Misso has officially filed as a candidate for the US House of Representatives in New York’s 24th Congressional District. He will run against Republican incumbent Republican John Katko.
“I am running because I believe in Central New York,” said Misso. “Our neighbors and our community deserve leaders who will put our needs ahead of the billionaires, big corporations, and political insiders who fund their campaigns. I am running to bring a new generation of servant leadership to Congress.”
“I believe in a different kind of politics and a better, more accountable kind of government. As your representative, my top priority will be to create a strong Central New York economy that is inclusive and accessible to people from every corner of our district. I will fight to provide jobs and security for all, to make health care universal and affordable, and to be a voice for farmers, small businesses, union members, and all the hardworking people who feel that both parties have forgotten them.”
Roger was raised in Red Creek in Wayne County and attended Red Creek schools. His father is retired State Police Sergeant, Roger Misso Sr. He grew up skipping stones at Rudy’s, washing dishes at The Cottage Inn, and saving enough money for annual trips to the Carrier Dome to watch Syracuse basketball. After graduating from Red Creek High School, he was appointed to the United States Naval Academy. Roger then served for more than a decade in the Navy, to include combat operations as a naval aviator.
Roger was deployed twice to the Middle East, flying on and off of aircraft carriers. He trained with the Marine Corps in Yuma, Arizona, and flew one of the first airborne missions to combat ISIS in 2014.
While in uniform, Roger served as an advocate for victims of sexual assault, a defense assistant in the US House of Representatives, and chief speechwriter for the first African-American woman to hold the rank of four-star in the nation’s history. As an early advocate for the Force of the Future initiative, Roger was part of a team of reformers who advocated for better family leave, increased child care service hours, and access to mental health services for military service members.
Misso will face off against Republican, Congressman John M. Katko, first elected to represent the 24th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives in November 2014, and re-elected for a second term in November 2016.
The 24th Congressional District includes all of Onondaga, Cayuga, and Wayne Counties and the western portion of Oswego County.
A Camillus, NY native, John left his 20-year career as a federal prosecutor to run for public office because he believes Central New York deserves strong, independent leadership in Washington.
In Congress, John serves on the House Homeland Security Committee as Chair of the Transportation and Protective Security subcommittee. He also serves on the House Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure.
After graduating with honors from both Niagara University and Syracuse University College of Law, John began his legal career in private practice at a firm in Washington, D.C. It was not long before John embarked on a career in public service, serving first as a Senior Trial Attorney at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and then commencing his twenty-year career as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice. Early in his career as a federal prosecutor, John served as a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia and with the DOJ’s Criminal Division, Narcotics & Dangerous Drug Section. In this capacity, John served as a Senior Trial Attorney on the U.S.-Mexico border in El Paso, Texas and in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
John and his wife, Robin, ultimately returned to John’s hometown of Camillus, NY to raise their family. For over 15 years, John served as a federal organized crime prosecutor in Syracuse for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Northern District of New York.
In President Donald Trump’s first 18 months in office, U.S. Rep. John Katko has tried to walk a fine line: He usually supports the Republican president’s agenda in Congress but is careful not to embrace Trump’s polarizing politics.
Katko, R-Camillus, has voted with House Republicans about 90 percent of the time since Trump took office, backing legislation to overhaul the tax code, increase military spending, roll back financial and environmental regulations, and allow Americans to carry concealed guns across state lines.
At the same time, Katko has opposed some high-profile Trump priorities. Those include repealing the Affordable Care Act, proposed cuts to Medicaid and food stamps, and a policy that separated hundreds of immigrant children from their families at the border.
Katko, co-chair of a moderate wing of House Republicans, has emphasized his independence during his first two terms in office.
In his first year in office, Katko broke with Republicans on about 19 percent of contested votes. That record ranked him as the eighth most likely to split with his party among 246 Republicans, according to Congressional Quarterly, a nonpartisan publication.
In his second term, Katko has voted more often with Republicans. He split with his party on almost 10 percent of contested votes where the GOP took a party position, according to ProPublica, an independent nonprofit newsroom that keeps a database tracking votes in Congress.
In today’s polarized Congress, Katko’s voting record qualifies him as one of its most independent members.
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