Rep. Josh Riley (D-N.Y.) reported strong fundraising numbers in the first quarter of 2026, outpacing his Republican challenger for New York’s 19th district, State Senator Peter Oberacker (R-N.Y.), by more than $300,000, according to Federal Election Commission filings.
A third candidate, Republican Alexander Portelli, also entered the race in February, though his campaign has reported little fundraising activity. The primary is set to take place on June 23, and the general election on November 3.
New York’s 19th District encompasses all of Ithaca and Tompkins County, as well as the Southern Tier of New York.
From Jan. 1 to March 31, Riley raised more than $1.2 million, nearly doubling Oberacker’s $674.31K. Riley’s total puts him in line with other New York democrats such as Rep. Pat Ryan (D-N.Y.), who raised roughly 1.3 million over the same period.
This early fundraising advantage comes as Riley faces a competitive reelection in New York's 19th congressional district.
Given Riley’s narrow 2% win in the district in 2024, the National Republican Campaign Committee has listed the seat as a “target” for the 2026 midterms.
During the 2024 election cycle, Political Action Committees and national party committees spent more than $30 million in the district across both liberal and conservative groups, especially on ads decrying Riley as an “open borders” Democrat and Riley’s then-Republican opponent, Marc Molinaro, as corrupt for taking corporate PAC money.
Individual donors accounted for a majority of Riley’s first-quarter contributions, which totalled $591,000. Contributions from PACs made up a nearly equal share of $569,000, according to FEC data. FEC filings show Riley received about $28.5K from 17 donations. These contributions came from industry-wide PACs rather than corporate PACs.
Oberacker, the founder of the industrial food-sourcing firm Form Tech Solutions (now called Agradigm), raised nearly half as much in the first quarter. He garnered about $244,000 in individual contributions and $224,000 from PACs. Unlike Riley, Oberacker relied on self-financing for $205,700.
Riley previously advocated for reducing corporate PAC money and sponsored the Ban Corporate PACs Act in July 2025. The bill was proposed by Riley to end corporate PAC loopholes and allow nonprofits to establish PACs.
“I’ve never taken a dime of corporate PAC money, and I never will,” Riley said in a 2025 press release. Since then, Riley has called for the overturning of Citizens United and the banning of dark money in politics.
While Riley’s 2026 campaign has received contributions from industry-specific PACs, there is no evidence of donations from corporate PACs specifically, according to a review of FEC data conducted by The Sun.
Riley highlighted his fundraising approach in late January, posting on X, “We've raised nearly $3.5 million without taking a dime from corporate PACs — because I work for you, not them. I'm humbled by that trust, and I won't let you down.”
