In an election that at one point looked to be sure for Republicans, Democrat Tedra Cobb has used support from her hometown of Canton to help make it a close race.  Elise Stefanik is the incumbent, but Cobb has gained large support from a district that in the past has been solidly Republican.  Both of them come from the North Country, but they are running on two different platforms.

Cobb has a large amount of support from the Canton area, including St. Lawrence University.  A student from Ogdensburg who will be voting in the upcoming election, sees big differences in Cobb and Stefanik’s support groups.  “Tedra has more support around the college campuses, while Stefanik has strong support from the more rural parts,” he said.

The same student also sees this election having a large impact on the North Country area.  “This election will have a big impact on the area as it will play a role in bringing jobs and improving infrastructure while maintaining environmental sustainability.”  This student met Cobb at a fundraiser in the past but was unsure about who would end up winning the election.

The Cobb campaign has had a large amount of support from the University students and recent graduates.  Madeline Thibault is the lead intern for Cobb’s campaign and discussed how the University’s impact on the campaign.  “A majority of the interns I have hired have come from St. Lawrence, and they have worked extremely hard over the past few months to prepare for Election Day.”

When Stefanik was elected for her first term in 2012, she was the youngest women ever elected.  Stefanik won her last two elections by significant margins, but the political climate has changed, and Cobb looks to present more of a challenge than the Stefanik’s previous opponents.  A part of Cobb’s campaign has been based around her residence and promised presence in the North Country.

Stefanik has gained a reputation of spending too much time in Washington D.C., an issue that Cobb has covered.  Thibault talked more about what separates Cobb from Stefanik.  “I believe that her reach out to St. Lawrence, her values, and being centrally located in Canton, because she is a North Country resident, will, hopefully, resonate with the students.”

This approach is already working, as Darren Ricalton a Canton local, who discussed his thoughts on who Cobb is.  Riaclton remembered having seen her around town many times in the past.  Ricalton said he planned on voting for her, supporting the message her campaign has put out.

Cobb won the democratic primary by a large margin and is still considered the underdog in many projections.  In the past the district has gone Republican for all but two elections for the House of Representatives.  The election will occur on Tuesday November 6^th, 2017.