Congressional candidate Chris Gallant got fundraising boost after explicit pictures released, campaign filing shows

WASHINGTON — Long Island Democratic congressional hopeful Chris Gallant has raised about $930,000 since early July, including a boost in fundraising after explicit photographs of him surfaced, according to campaign finance filings released this week.

His total during the reporting period outpaced his Republican rival, Rep. Nick LaLota (R-Amityville), and his campaign said he raised $350,000 — 38% of the total — in the two weeks after the photos were published widely.

The race for the Suffolk County-based 1st Congressional District seat, which covers the East End and the northern half of Long Island to Huntington, had not been attracting much attention before last month. Nonpartisan political handicappers have given LaLota, seeking a third term, the edge, and the contest has not been widely considered a pivotal race in the nationwide battle for U.S. House control.

But national attention came to Gallant’s campaign after photos were published Sept. 13 in the Messenger Papers and the New York Post featuring him in bondage gear and posed in sexual acts with another man.

The images instantly went viral.

Gallant, an openly gay military pilot and firefighter, acknowledged the images were of him. He also dismissed notions he would not stay in the race. And as part of his rebound, he launched a new theme: "Make Politics Sexy Again."

Within a week, Suffolk County Democratic Committee chairman Rich Schaffer crowed that in the days after the photos were published, "Chris has had the best 72 hours of the campaign with surging fundraising, social media following and volunteers."

On Thursday, the numbers came in. Both Gallant, of Amity Harbor — neither candidate lives in the district — and LaLota filed their required quarterly fundraising reports with the Federal Election Commission. They were a mixed bag.

Gallant outraised LaLota from July 1 to Sept. 30, the entire period covered in this latest filing.

The filings show Gallant raised $929,825 during the period — and that he still had $609,773 in the bank as of Sept. 30. By comparison, LaLota raised $609,038 over the period. However, LaLota has $2.73 million still stockpiled in his campaign coffers.

"People are paying closer and closer attention to this campaign — and they like what they see," Gallant said in a statement. More than 55% of the campaign’s individual donations came in during those two weeks.

When LaLota was asked by Newsday about the Gallant fundraising outpacing his own since July 1, he responded in a statement that Gallant has been declining to debate him, and he asserted Gallant has been "monetizing" the photos and his "pornographic modeling past." LaLota added, "He owes Long Islanders an explanation for choosing vanity and fundraising over debates and accountability."

On the trail

While Gallant may be leaning into the photographs online and in campaign statements, he didn't bring them up as he campaigned at civic group meetings in South Huntington, Centereach and Middle Island on Thursday.

Gallant gave a similar speech at each event, introducing himself as an Army National Guard pilot, volunteer firefighter, air traffic controller and union leader before briefly addressing issues including the Iran war, rising home heating oil prices and Long Islanders losing health insurance because of federal funding cuts.

At one event, Gallant drew on his military background to argue against the Iran war. He said his fiance is deployed overseas, giving him a personal stake in the conflict.

While other male candidates wore suits and ties, Gallant stood out in a more casual outfit: a dress shirt with the top buttons undone.

No one asked him about the photos at any of the meetings. Instead, questions were posed on issues such as protecting Social Security benefits, the Epstein files and foreign money in politics.

Mary Ann Whelan, 69, of Middle Island, said in an interview after one of the meetings that Gallant is "fresh and exciting."

"Things have to change out here," Whelan said.

On Friday, Kyle Kondik, managing editor of the nonpartisan political forecaster Sabato's Crystal Ball, said of the publication's unchanged rating of the race, "We have it as 'Likely Republican' — so it's on the playing field but just at the very edge of it."