Sean Eldridge has a lot going for him. He’s the son of two physicians and head of his own venture capital firm. He attended Harvard, where he met his husband-to-be, Chris Hughes. As one of the co-founders of Facebook, Hughes is fabulously wealthy, so the couple live comfortably in a $1.9 million house they bought in the Hudson Valley of New York.
What Eldridge will not have any time soon is a seat in Congress. Despite pouring nearly $2 million of his own money into a campaign to unseat incumbent Republican Chris Gibson, Eldridge is running well behind. Political observers have called Eldridge’s campaign “a flop,” and Eldridge has resorted to trumpeting an internal poll that shows him cutting GIbson lead in half: to ten percentage points.
Internal polls are notorious for giving candidates the kind of results they can trumpet, regardless of the reality. (Gibson’s internal polls shows him up by 26 percent.) The reality in this case is that Eldridge is so far behind, he will never catch up.
Eldridge had a couple of strikes against him from the outset. Being gay was never really one of them, but being a carpetbagger was. Eldridge and Hughes chose their house in what looked suspiciously like a case of district shopping. (They originally bought a home in another Congressional district, but moved when that seat looked unattainable.) He also had the misfortune to go up against a hometown boy in Gibson, who lives in the house where he grew up and is one of the least wealthy members of Congress.
How about we take this to the next level?
Our newsletter is like a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
Eldridge then proceeded to run a virtual campaign, which might make sense given his husband’s background, but which ended up irritating some would-be Democratic allies, who expected to be courted in person. And Eldridge’s deep pockets made him an easy target for Gibson, though the Republican has raised comparable sums of money from GOP-aligned PACs.
Perhaps the final strike against Eldridge was deciding to run in an off-year. This election cycle heavily favors Republicans, because Republican voters, who are generally older, turn out in higher numbers than Democrats do. But Eldridge hasn’t made many inroads with traditional Democratic voters either. Just a month ago, he was still unknown to more than half of the likely voters, including Democrats.
Eldridge still has a promising political future. He’s shown a lot more than a pretty face. He’s got a grasp on policy, his heart is in the right place, and he improved on the campaign trail as the race has worn on. He and Hughes will not repeat the same mistakes.
And it’s true that Eldridge could still pull off an upset on Nov. 4. But what Eldridge is more likely to learn is that even money can’t buy miracles.
Ron Jackson
It seems obvious to me that he doesn’t want it bad enough to slug it out in the trenches with republicans. You can’t just run a virtual campaign and expect to win.
MarionPaige
All of the above could have been said about Bloomberg’s last campaign for Mayor of NYC until he called in Giuliani to incite the anti-Black voters. And Bloomberg still just barely won re-election.
this whole article comes off sounding a bit jealous. He’s young, he’s hot, he got a rich husband BUT he can’t get elected. If He’s young and rich, he’ll probably get elected to something soon. Out of the three, Bloomberg was only rich.
I like the part about $1.9 million dollar house. Don’t all of those shit shacks on Long Island quality as at least $1.9 million dollar houses?
onthemark
There are still very few places outside of California where a “virtual campaign” might work, and upstate NY (a.k.a. northern Appalachia) is certainly not one of them. I wonder what percentage of voters in that district even have internet access.
Kieran
What are you talking about? Money has bought plenty of pretty heterosexuals seats in Congress. The Senate is a virtual heterosexual millionaires club.
Why do gays take such glee in trying to tear each other down? Shouldn’t we be encouraging gay people like Sean Eldridge to run for public office? This article could have been written for the Breitbart or Fox News website.
Stache99
His kind of campaign alienates even his own people. He’s known as an elitist, he didn’t even bother to come out and meet his constituents, and it has the appearance that he doesn’t really care about the community ie the carpet begging.
Of coarse like some of you said most of Congress is already doing that but he went up against someone who people could at least relate to.
erikwm
It’s unseemly to buy a house in a district and declare for Congress the same year. He should have waited until 2016, an election more likely to be favorable to Democrats.
Cam
Seems like he should have spent some time building a base, but then again, maybe this campaign was just to get his name out there. Now he spends the next two years prepping for 2016.
onthemark
@Kieran: I’m guessing the Facebook angle doesn’t help. Queerty staff delights in reporting FB’s many anti-gay flubs. Queerty readers don’t seem overly positive about the thing either.
jhr459
@Kieran: Hear, hear, Kieran !!!
jhr459
And isn’t 1.9 mil really just a pittance for a billionaire? They prolly have that in the sofa cushions.
demented
@Kieran: Where are these pretty Congressmen I hear about? all the ones I’ve seen look like blobs of flesh or aging pedos.
I agree with erikwm and Cam. This either seems more like an attempt to get notice as a political figure before the REAL campaign, or a horrendous misstep. People won’t miss that he just moved in to run for office.
I question whether 2016 will be favorable to Democrats, though. Often when an incumbent president is finally scraped out of the Oval Office, people are completely sick and jaded of his political party. So they elect the guy from the other party, and the ugly cycle starts again.
Black Pegasus
Running for public office requires lots of self promotion, and dare I say arrogance.
While there are a small of number of people who actually seek public office for civic service to the people, a great majority of them only seek out these judgeships, council seats, state representative, and higher offices for sheer social climbing and narcissistic legacy keeping of the family. Most of them are third generation college grads, with a rich history of family alums from prestigious universities and professional backgrounds. These types of guys are expected to do more than just earned lots of money. They are expected to amass POWER to accompany the privilege their forefathers already provided.
And yes, I’ve dated a couple of these “privilege individuals.” So there is no hyperbole in the statements I’ve made.
tdh1980
I won’t weep for the failure of the campaign of a trust-fund baby who already has everything. Our Congress is already filled to capacity with these types, be they Democrat or Republican, which is why we’re in the mess we’re in now. I’d be more invested in a regular Joe who knows the struggles of us regular Joes and, therefore, can truly advocate for us.
Stache99
@tdh1980: Amen brother. I think some here think that he’s one of us so we need to stand behind him no matter what. Of coarse if he’s a Republican all bets are off.
This guy wouldn’t know the issues of the regular Joes if it came up and bit him on his wealthy entitled ass. To do that you have to get out and meet regular people which he refuses to do.
We get what we vote for though and the rich keep on getting richer while the middle class is becoming a thing of the past.
Stache99
I do have to say I love his dazzling smile with those whiter then white bonded teeth though:)
KwisatzHaderach
@tdh1980:
So if you lived in NY-19, you’d vote for Chris Gibson (who opposes marriage equality and is no great advocate for gay people) over Eldridge?
MarionPaige
Traditionally, I think, the political process has been corrupted by poor wannabe rich suck asses (like Koch) seeing political office as a way to become rich. It seems that the “trend” of extremely wealthy individuals funding their own campaigns is something new – the jury being out on whether or not it is a good thing or a bad thing. Personally, I think the very wealthy have far more in common with the poor / average guy than the fucking shit heads in the middle (who think they are well off).
Using Bloomberg again as an example, is Bloomberg really a Republican? Are any of the extremely wealthy really hardwired affiliated with any political party? In my opinion, the extremely wealthy are more likely to call bullshit on Republican Idealogy than the middle class. LIKE, the extremely wealthy are probably more likely to be in favor of immigration (cheap labor) than the middle class Joe who sees immigrants as a threat. And, I have always wondered just how much time the extremely wealthy spend in a day worrying about Blacks.
New York City Politics is the model for political activity in a “state” where there is no clear ethnic or racial majority voting block. In New York City, in order to aggregate a majority, you have to come up with some issue that angers enough people that they vote across party lines. AND, in case you haven’t noticed, America is becoming New York City – America is becoming a “state” in which there is no clear racial / ethnic / religious block of voters. Hence you get shit issues like Gay Fucking Marriage, an issue that served to anger enough people that they crossed party lines to elect a fucking Bush president.
Anyone who really appreciates just what The Republican Party is capable of (a party of little men who most definitely are not rich) could not help but be angered by the fact that a handful of fucking brain dead Queens willingly aided The Republican Party is using Gay Marriage as a wedge issue (aggregator). Is Giuliani rich? Was Koch Rich? Is Elizabeth hasselfuckface rich?
Stache99
@KwisatzHaderach: I don’t think tdh1980 is telling anyone who to vote for. Just a general complaint. Yes we must vote the best of the worse with the choices that we have.
jamessmith
I actually LIVE in this district. You guys are so far off base with your assumptions, I can’t believe I’m on a gay site and not a conservative one. First off, I’ve met Eldridge in person three times. He is meeting people IN PERSON all over the place, and if you live in this district and haven’t bothered to meet him, shame on you. Virtual campaign? What planet are you living on? Their campaign resembles Obama’s boots-on-the-ground campaign more than any federal campaign I’ve seen here since 2008. My guess is you haven’t bothered to see for yourselves what’s going on here.
Meanwhile, Republican Chris Gibson is anti-gay, votes pro-life, and is pro-fracking; meanwhile, he lies to moderates and liberals on his record. But what does Queerty do? Trash the candidate whose apparent sins are
1) marrying a rich husband (do you realize how much super PAC anti-gay, oil & bank money is flowing in to support Gibson?)
2) Carpetbagging. Hmm, you must care about the good ol’ boy monopolies in our district who want the pork brought back to their own special interests and to pay off donors. You must want one of those types in the House. Give me a break. Eldridge dropped out of law school to devote his life to getting Marriage Equality passed in NY. He has worked hard on behalf of your own interests. You should be thanking your higher power (who isn’t doing a very good job with you…) that a Democrat in my district has any money at all.
This flimsily-researched article and most of the comments are beyond illogical at a pro-gay site. The only reason I can think of is that your envy runs deeper than your personal empowerment. You would rather hurt your own interests than support someone you’re jealous of. The Republicans are laughing themselves to the House.
PS: the Gibson campaign makes a point of telling voters about Sean’s “husband” – they are very much riling up the anti-gay voters. Please pull your heads, pretty or not, out of the sand.
MarionPaige
Sean Edridge is so blindingly perfect. Maybe if he had a pimple on that face the gays could accept him.
KwisatzHaderach
@jamessmith:
Thanks for that first-hand account of the situation. I didn’t realize Gibson was so bad (I only glanced at his HRC rating).
I do hope that Eldridge will try again in 2016. If the Republicans take the Senate and the gridlock in Congress worsens, he could fare better.
Saint Law
@MarionPaige: MarionPaige’s hysterical State of the Nation addresses always sound like they’re broadcast from some Alternate Earth, where the biggest assault on the rights and dignity of gay people is the campaign for same sex marriage.
Virge
@demented:
Cute Congressmen?
Google Aaron Schock. He’s beyond cute.
onthemark
@MarionPaige: Looks like a ZIT on his left cheek. It’s so sad when even billionaires can’t afford Proactiv! Anyway, marriage is a done deal in NY so you don’t need to harp on it any further.
DarkZephyr
So based on some of the comments some of you think that he sucks because A) he’s attractive and B) he’s rich? So let’s vote for a homophobe because he’s not rich? Makes sense to me! (Not really).
@MarionPaige: I’m sorry that you are old and single. 🙁
BJ McFrisky
Another example of a novice’s extreme political arrogance.
Kind of like, “I was married to Bill Clinton when he was president, so I’m qualified to be president, too!”
demented
@Stache99: A multi-million-dollar smile.
@BJ McFrisky: At least she might have absorbed some political know-how along the way. Dunno what a spouse who co-founded facebook will do for his knowledge.
DarkZephyr
@BJ McFrisky: so lets make sure we get as many homophobes in office as we can, that should please ya!
BJ McFrisky
@demented: And a surgical nurse will “absorb” some surgical know-how along the way, but you wouldn’t let a nurse operate on you, would you?
@DarkZephyr: Don’t want homophobes in office, just competent, qualified leaders. But I suppose that’s too much to ask for in this climate of identity-trumps-achievement politics.
DCFarmboi
In other news, running for governor of Maine is a blue collar, openly gay former paper mill worker. I rather have a gay in high office from the factory floor than another millionaire.
E T
@BJ McFrisky: Hillary already established herself in politics and in law prior to meeting her husband, and she had a full career of her own. On another note, if you want achievements to be the focus, it is important to challenge homophobia – too often the conversation strays away from what he has or hasn’t accomplished, focusing on things like his “pretty face” and “rich husband from Facebook.” Reading this article here, tells me absolutely nothing about his political career, and it doesn’t prop him up as a gay man – it puts him down. Your criticism is out of place. Identity (Christian, heterosexual, married, white, middle class, American, etc.) does not trump achievement.
jaleoman
I could not agree more with “James Smith”, guys and queerty
What’s wrong? We have almost the entire world, constantly
Attacking us, discriminating us just because our sexual
Orientation, and we can’t even support our own
Gay candidates. Until that we start supporting
Our gay politicians, gay celebrities, we won’t
Get stronger as a community. Look at the black
Community how they support unconditionally
Their celebrities and politicians.
TomHahn
Are you serious? Are you jealous of Sean? Seriously, what is all this bitchy remarks about him, his husband and his family? I am ashamed that you published such a tabloid version of someone’s life. This man is putting himself on the spot to try and make a difference and you focus not on the issues of the other candidate who is no friend to the gay community, but his lifestyle. You are jealous and are no journalist. When you step up to the plate and try to make a difference in others lives, then you might be taken seriously. Until then, stay out of politics and serious issues -only because you cannot be taken seriously at all.
Alan down in Florida
And nowhere is it mentioned what the demographics of NY-19 are. Sean’s trailing might have absolutely nothing to do with either his campaign or his self. So many districts are gerrymandered in favor of Republicans that even Jesus couldn’t carry if he were a Democrat.
BJ McFrisky
@E T: Sorry, but it’s true that identity trumps achievement. The most obvious example is Obama: He had no experience in governing, only in legislating (and nothing notable in that career), but people still ushered him into office for on-the-job training not because of any experience he had but because they wanted to see the First Black President in their lifetime.
And there it is. Identity trumping achievement.
wpewen
To some degree what is happening is an emerging group of gay men who in times past would have stayed closeted but now are taking over based on class level. Quite a few are in the Northeast, prime bastion of pedigrees central. Being an LA mutt, I can’t relate at all to these people, I’ve encountered them on their home turf. I saw Harvey Milk in SF in 78, someone I can identify with. I’d rather put up with straight working stiffs anyday than this-and that’s what Milk was, except for straight. The new crowd fits right in with Gilded Age II. They would never have started the gay movement.
wpewen
@jamessmith: No envy here. Just observing pattern. The privileged riding the coat tails of a movement which was very different from this. Facebook husband? Speaks for itself.
stanhope
@jamessmith: Hating is hardly a new experience. These gals likely have no rich husband, no comparable pedigree, no equivalent education and [though I don’t agree that he is all that good looking] don’t have his looks.
jwtraveler
And he’s Canadian.
wpewen
@stanhope: Referring to gay men as “gals” is reason enough for some of us to keep our distance with much of the gay men’s community. At 56 years old and coming out in 76 I’m guessing I don’t feel much the same as you at all. And there are lots of gay guys like me.
BJ McFrisky
@wpewen: Hear, hear.
Bromancer7
He is not running a “virtual campaign”, and I have no idea where you get this info. He busts his ass all week long, and has been for years, going out to various events around the Hudson Valley and meeting people in person. Dude is all over the place, all the time.
MarionPaige
out of curiosity, I checked the “tone” of Gawker’s posts about Eldridge. Gawker Media, the wannabe facebook empire that ain’t. And, Denton next to his husband does not have quite the same impact as Eldrige next to his Facebook billonaire husband. You can pretty much trace all attacks on someone gay to some freakshow looking pissed off queen