New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand Faces Challenge From Former Boxing Champion

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill, on May 5, 2022. Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo

Award-winning conservative journalist and former boxing champion, Cara Castronuova, aims to unseat Kirsten Gillibrand, New York’s three-term Democratic Senator, in the November election.

In an interview with the New York Post, Ms. Castronuova—a New York native and former Golden Glove boxer-turned-investigative reporter for Newsmax—said she believes her former career in the ring gives her a fighting chance at beating the Democrat.

“I have been a fighter my whole life,” Ms. Castronuova, 44, told the publication. “Let me get inside the ropes against Kirsten Gillibrand one-on-one, woman versus woman. I will knock her out of DCC and bring home the title to the Republican Party.”

“I’m not afraid,” she added. “I know what’s like to lose. I know what it’s like to win. It’s about the fight.”

Ms. Castronuova’s bid comes just days before the Republican nominating convention is set to take place.

Despite her late entry into the field, she has already won support from the Staten Island Republican Party and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani who called her a “world-class investigative journalist and boxing champion” and “a fighter who knows how to deliver results.”

Roger Stone, an ex-adviser to former President Donald Trump, has also endorsed Ms. Castronuova.

The former boxer told the New York Post that she hopes to get 25 percent of the weighted vote from party activists at the upcoming convention to qualify to run in a Republican primary.

‘Voters Should Have a Choice’

“Primaries are healthy. Voters should have a choice,” said Ms. Castronuova.

Ms. Castronuov also told The Gateway Pundit that she is the “only America First candidate” that openly supports President Trump and “will help him campaign here in New York.”

“I am the best candidate to hit this out of the ballpark,” she said.

Ms. Castronuova previously ran for election to the New York State Assembly to represent District 22 in 2022, however, she ultimately lost to Democrat Michaelle Solages.

The former boxer has been a fierce supporter of President Trump and an advocate for victims of political persecution, having co-founded the non-partisan group Citizens Against Political Persecution.

She has also widely advocated for some individuals incarcerated in relation to the Jan. 6, 2021 breach of the U.S. Capitol.

Gillibrand Seeking Third Term

Ms. Castronuova told The Gateway Pundit that, if elected to the Senate, she would work to support veterans, fight political persecution and censorship of conservatives, and work to help close the Southern border amid the ongoing illegal immigration crisis.

Sen. Gillibrand, 57, announced last year that she would be seeking a third term in office representing New York in Capitol Hill’s upper chamber.

Earlier this month, the New York State Democratic Committee officially designated her as their Democratic candidate for another term, calling her a “relentless champion for New York families, working across the aisle to deliver real results for our state.”

“From delivering health benefits to 9/11 first responders and our veterans to passing anti-gun trafficking legislation to bringing home half a billion dollars for local projects, Senator Gillibrand delivers for New York,” state Democratic Committee Chair Jay Jacobs said in a statement.

However, Ms. Castronuova told The Gateway Pundit that Senator Gillibrand “just shows up to vote for bad Democrat policies and that’s it.”

“Many people believe she’s vulnerable this year because Trump is a strong candidate in New York. People are sick of the progressive politics in New York that we witness every day. She can be beat[en],” the former boxer said. “I am the best person to beat her.”