2006 New Member Profiles
New York's 24th District: Michael Arcuri (D)

The Almanac of American Politics
© National Journal Group Inc.

Michael Arcuri
Born:	Born: June 11, 1959
Family:	Divorced; two children
Religion:	Catholic
Education:	State University of New York at Albany, B.A. 1981; New York Law School, J.D. 1984
Career:	Lawyer
Elected  Office:	Oneida County district attorney, 1993-2006

After an unusual campaign in which both candidates distanced themselves from an avalanche of negative ads aired on their behalf by the national parties, Michael Arcuri emerged as the winner in the race to succeed retiring Rep. Sherwood Boehlert, one of the most moderate Republicans in Congress.

In this central New York district, Arcuri positioned himself as the natural successor to the 12-term incumbent, going so far as to say he was a "Boehlert Democrat." That strategy proved to be smart in a district with 40,000 more registered Republican voters than Democrats -- and with 70,000 independents, among whom Boehlert remained popular.

Arcuri, the first Democrat elected as Oneida County district attorney in 40 years, was unopposed in his party's September 12 primary. He also had the benefit of endorsements from the New York AFL-CIO and SEIU -- trophies in a district where jobs are a top issue. And Arcuri enjoyed one other critical advantage: He had no legislative record to defend -- unlike his GOP opponent, state Sen. Raymond Meier -- which made it difficult for Republicans to argue that he was too liberal.

Both veterans of Oneida County politics, Arcuri and Meier referred to each other as friends, and they remained relatively civil for much of the campaign. The national parties, however, had no compunction about attacking the candidates.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee sponsored one direct-mail piece, titled "Spending like a Drunken Sailor," that showed Meier holding a champagne bottle. The National Republican Congressional Committee ran a racy ad featuring the silhouette of a dancing woman that accused Arcuri of calling a phone sex line and charging Oneida County taxpayers for it. That ad was later discredited. Both candidates disavowed the harshest of the personal attacks and instead focused on who was the better ideological fit for the district.

Arcuri supports abortion rights and opposes new gun laws, and he pointed to his record on environmental issues. He argued that Meier was far more conservative than Boehlert, and he consistently linked his opponent to the Bush administration. In an election year when statewide Democratic candidates were poised for runaway victories and Republicans were on the defensive -- even in upstate New York -- a position to the right of Boehlert ended up being the wrong place for Meier.