Supreme Court saves Rep. Nicole Malliotakis' Staten Island district

Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News on Mar 3, 2026

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The U.S. Supreme Court handed Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-New York, a lifeline by ruling that her Staten Island-based district does not need to be redrawn ahead of the 2026 midterm congressional elections.

The conservative top court blocked a state court judge’s ruling that ordered the state’s redistricting committee to redraw the lines of the GOP-friendly district because he said it unfairly diluted the power of Black and Latino voters.

The ruling means Malliotakis’ NY-11 district will likely remain unchanged, covering Staten Island and a small slice of Republican-leaning south Brooklyn, at least through the fall midterms.

“That is unadorned racial discrimination, an inherently ‘odious’ activity that violates the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause except in the ‘most extraordinary case,’” Justice Samuel Alito wrote.

The outcome amounts to a victory for Republicans in the unprecedented mid-decade tug-of-war over redistricting that could help determine control of the closely divided House of Representatives.

Republicans currently hold a narrow four-seat majority in the House and polls say they are likely to face a difficult political environment in the fall midterms.

Malliotakis, the only Republican congressional representative from New York City, praised the high court ruling.

“I thank the justices who stopped the voters on Staten Island and in southern Brooklyn from being stripped of their ability to elect a representative who reflects their values,” Malliotakis said in a statement.

Assuming there are no further unexpected legal twists, the ruling also sets the stage anew for a spirited Democratic primary fight between Rep. Dan Goldman and former Controller Brad Lander in the neighboring NY-10 district.

Goldman, a pro-Israel moderate, was considered likely to switch into the NY-11 race if Malliotakis’ district was redrawn to include portions of deep-blue lower Manhattan. Now he and Lander, a progressive favorite, will likely face off in a primary for NY-10, which spans lower Manhattan and a large swath of brownstone Brooklyn.