Farmingdale resident Will Murphy announced he officially filed his candidacy with the FEC for the Democratic nomination of representative of New York’s 3rd Congressional District. Murphy presents the latest potential obstacle that controversial incumbent Republican representative George Santos will face as he seeks re-election in 2024.
Murphy attended New York University before earning his law degree at Touro University Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center. He worked as a federal court litigator for a Long Island labor and employment law firm before starting his own solo practice. Murphy’s practice primarily represented local small blue-collar businesses. He also joined St. John’s University as an administrator in 2014 before eventually becoming a full-time faculty member for the university’s Division of Criminal Justice, Legal Studies and Homeland Security.
In 2021, Murphy received the St. John’s University Faculty Excellence in Student Engagement Award, the highest honor a faculty member at the college can receive. He has also received other honors over the years, including the prestigious “King of Queens” and “Leadership in Law” distinctions from local media as well as multiple citations of merit from the New York state Senate, Assembly and City Council.
In his campaign announcement, Murphy attempted to emphasize that the district is in need of someone other than a career politician. He stated that he is just a husband, father, friend, neighbor, teacher and attorney who, like many others within the community, wants to see a change.
“It is time for the disgraceful and embarrassing reality show in D.C. to end,” Murphy said in a statement. “Nobody there is fighting for the rights and values of real people. We deserve better than career politicians without any skin in the game who are driven by ambition, ego, self-interest or worse. We will put the service back into public service and give people the actual choice they deserve on the ballot.”
When bringing up George Santos, Murphy said he believes that many career politicians have prioritized their own interests over those of the country they were elected to serve by allowing him to remain in the House. He also feels that not enough representatives have been willing and able to speak up and fight for children, families or small businesses within their districts.
Murphy isn’t the first to file their candidacy with the FEC for New York’ 3rd Congressional District. In the beginning of April, Kellen Curry launched his campaign to attempt to earn the Republican nomination over Santos. Despite Santos’ many scandals and calls by many of his constituents as well as some Republican colleagues to step down, he recently filed for his reelection campaign.
Some of the policies that Murphy’s campaign calls for includes fighting to restore the State and Local Tax (SALT) deduction in order to put money back into the pockets of residents within the district, a renewal of the 1994 Assault Weapons Ban, protecting bodily autonomy, reproductive rights and marriage equality, keeping politicians away from determining what is and isn’t taught at schools and adequate federal funding of Early Intervention and Special Education services.
