Mother and Advocate
Claudia Tenney is an attorney, businesswoman and advocate for the 24th District. Her insight into public service has been shaped by experiences beyond politics, including juggling the demands of running a small business while raising her son as a single mother.
Claudia was elected to Congress in November 2016 to represent New York’s old 22nd District which encompasses eight counties in Upstate New York. Prior to her election to Congress, Claudia represented portions of the 24th District for six years in the New York State Assembly.
Claudia graduated from Colgate University and the Taft College of Law at the University of Cincinnati. She is the co-owner of Mid-York Press, Inc., a commercial printing and manufacturing firm started by her maternal grandfather in 1946 in Hamilton, Madison County. Mid-York Press now currently employs nearly 80 people in the Chenango County community of Sherburne.
Claudia was the only American employed by the Consulate General of Yugoslavia. She has remained active with friends and colleagues from the former Yugoslav Consulate and with the Bosnian refugee population in the Utica area. She also published and produced the first Bosnian newspaper in Utica, which is home to the largest Bosnian population in the nation.
Fighting for NY-24
Whether in Albany or Washington, Claudia has always been a staunch advocate for our region and the taxpayers of Upstate New York. Claudia has voted against all tax increases. In the Assembly, she sponsored legislation to eliminate the state personal income tax. As an ardent defender of the Second Amendment, she was the first to sponsor a bill to fully repeal New York’s SAFE Act, Governor Cuomo’s unconstitutional gun bill. In Congress, Claudia is fighting for the hardworking families, small business owners, and family farmers in Upstate New York.
After winning her election in 2020 by 109 votes in the longest election battle in the country, Claudia founded and serves as the Chairwoman of the Election Integrity Caucus, the largest caucus in Congress dedicated solely to securing our elections. The Caucus has held meetings with legislators across the country, State Attorney Generals, Secretaries of State, thought leaders and Governors to draft model legislation, collaborate on messaging and unite the Republican Party around the fight to preserve our sacred right to vote. In the 2021 election, Claudia led the charge to successfully defeat 3 ballot propositions in New York that would have seriously undermined the integrity of our elections. She teamed up with National, State and Local leaders to get the vote in opposition to these proposals, and won. This was the first statewide election win for Republicans in New York since 2002!
Claudia is a frequent guest on Fox Business and has been published multiple times in the New York Post, Washington Times and National Review.
Claudia is the daughter of the late Cynthia and the late Honorable John R. Tenney – who served as a Justice of the Supreme Court of New York in the Fifth Judicial District from 1969 through 2003. Claudia is the mother of 2013 U.S. Naval Academy Graduate, Trey Cleary who is now serving as a Captain in the U.S. Marine Corps.