The race for New York's 21st District in Congress

PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. (WCAX) – Election Day is just a week away and voters in New York's 21st Congressional District are deciding who will represent them in Washington for another two years. Incumbent Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., one of the highest-ranking Republicans in the House of Representatives, faces Democrat Paula Collins, a cannabis tax advocate who lives in De Kalb Junction.

“The assault rifle doesn’t have to be held by someone who has children at home, and it doesn’t have to be owned by someone who has a mental health issue,” Collins said.

Stefanik says Congress should take a different approach to banning certain weapons. “I supported school resource officers and increased mental health funding. School Resource Officers are programs supported by county sheriffs. And what I have done at the federal level is to make federal money available,” she said.

When it comes to health care, Collins says lawmakers should expand Medicare to everyone while maintaining private insurance. “If she were to lose her job or restructure the company and could no longer continue with this policy, there would be an underlying health system available,” she said.

However, Stefanik says she will continue to work to improve access to health care. “I have been a proponent of providing outcomes for our seniors in the form of millions of dollars in Social Security benefits and Medicare benefits for our seniors. “In addition, I have encouraged telehealth when available, and part of that is rural broadband,” she said.

On the northern border, where Border Patrol apprehensions have risen sharply in the last year, Stefanik said she supports legislation to increase the number of border agents. “What we need to do is elect President Trump, who will end catch and release, who will restore 'Remain in Mexico,' and who will continue to invest in border protection and building the border wall on our southern border.” My priority is is to ensure that the northern border has the resources we need. We voted for the Secure the Border Act in Congress – all Democrats opposed it. I was proud to vote for it. “That would provide the personnel we need on the northern border,” Stefanik said.

Collins agrees that more funding is needed, but also suggests that a bipartisan border bill could be a solution. “We had a bipartisan bill that was very strictly focused on enforcement, very much focused on having more judges at the border to process asylum seekers or other types of border crossers, and also making sure that there's a way that someone can cross, within a certain distance time to find a job, a temporary work visa,” she said.

Both candidates sharply criticized each other during the election campaign. Stefanik has sued Collins for allegedly misusing campaign funds to pay rent, which Collins said he has remedied. “Basically all it takes is just putting the place where I'm currently sleeping – in De Kalb Junction – which is also a campaign headquarters, inserting that one credit card and assigning the others to another credit card,” Collins said.

Collins took aim at Stefanik's voting record when he opposed the Infrastructure Jobs Act, the PACT Act and the Inflation Reduction Act.

“I have committed over $800 million to this district in grants and citizen initiatives. Be it for sewers and waterways through the Northern Border Regional Commission or for the workforce development programs that I am proud to deliver,” Stefanik said.

Both candidates declare that they will accept the results of their election.

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