Claudia Tenney Bio
Claudia L. Tenney (born February 4, 1961) is an American attorney and Republican politician serving as the U.S. Representative for New York’s 24th congressional district. She previously represented the state’s 22nd congressional district from 2017 to 2019 and again from 2021 to 2023, and she served in the New York State Assembly from 2011 to 2016. Known as a vocal conservative and an outspoken supporter of President Donald Trump, Tenney has built a career in Upstate New York politics, media, and law. Her congressional campaigns have repeatedly drawn national attention for their competitiveness and for closely contested recounts.
Early Life and Background
Claudia L. Tenney was born and raised in New Hartford, New York, a small community in Oneida County. Her father, John R. Tenney, later served as a New York State Supreme Court Justice, and her mother, Cynthia Tenney, came from a family with deep roots in the region’s printing industry. Growing up in this environment gave Tenney an early exposure to both civic life and small business, shaping the conservative principles that would later define her political career.
Tenney attended New Hartford High School, where she played basketball and curling and competed in horseback riding. These activities reflected the rural character of her hometown and encouraged the discipline and competitiveness that would mark her later pursuits. After graduating, she continued her education at Colgate University, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1983. She then went on to attend the University of Cincinnati College of Law, receiving her Juris Doctor in 1987 and laying the groundwork for a long career in legal practice.
Path to US Politics
Before entering electoral politics, Claudia L. Tenney built a varied professional resume that included law, media, and family business. Early in her career, she was the only American employed by the Consulate General of Yugoslavia, where she acted as an intermediary between ABC Sports and the Yugoslavian government leading up to the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo. She also maintained a private law practice in Clinton, New York, and previously worked as a partner at the Utica-area law firm of Groben, Gilroy, Oster and Saunders. She co-owned Mid-York Press, a commercial printing company started by her mother’s family in 1946 and based in Sherburne, Chenango County.
Tenney’s media presence grew alongside her legal work. In January 2001, she began co-hosting Common Cents, a radio and television program that aired weekly across Oneida and most of Herkimer County. In February 2010, she took on another role as co-host of First Look on WIBX 950 Radio. Her entry into formal politics came in 2002, when New York State Assemblyman David R. Townsend Jr. asked her to become his legal counsel and Chief of Staff. In 2009, she ran for Oneida County Surrogate Court Judge as a Republican, receiving 45 percent of the vote against incumbent Democrat Louis Gigliotti, a result that positioned her for her next political step.
Claudia Tenney Career
Early Career (2011–2016)
Claudia L. Tenney launched her elected career in 2010, when she ran for the New York State Assembly seat vacated by David Townsend after he launched a campaign for Oneida County Sheriff. She defeated Oneida County Legislator George Joseph in the September Republican primary and ran unopposed in the November general election, becoming the first woman to represent the district. She served in the 115th Assembly District from 2011 to 2013 and in the 101st Assembly District from 2013 to 2017.
During her time in the Assembly, Tenney built a strongly conservative voting record. In 2011, she voted against the Marriage Equality Act, and in 2012, she was one of 18 cosponsors of the Internet Protection Act, a bill aimed at combating online bullying that did not pass. That same year, the Conservative Party of New York State recognized her as the state’s most conservative legislator. She also voted against the 2013 gun control law known as the NY SAFE Act, calling it an assault on upstate residents, and against a 2013 state constitutional amendment authorizing full-fledged casinos on non-Indian lands.
Breakthrough (2016–2017)
Tenney’s first run for Congress came in 2014, when she challenged incumbent U.S. Representative Richard L. Hanna in the Republican primary for New York’s 22nd congressional district and lost 53 percent to 47 percent. Undeterred, she returned in 2016 after Hanna’s retirement and won a three-way Republican primary on June 28, 2016. Endorsed by the Conservative Party of New York State, the Susan B. Anthony List, the Citizens United Victory Fund, and New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms PAC, she went on to defeat Democrat Kim Myers and Independent Martin Babinec in the November general election with 44 percent of the vote, claiming the seat and beginning her tenure in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Her first term was marked by high-profile votes and legislation. In March 2017, she voted to reverse an FCC privacy rule that had blocked internet service providers from selling customer browsing history without permission. In May 2017, she voted for the American Health Care Act, a bill that passed the House but died in the Senate. She also voted for the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, which lowered the top personal income tax rate, reduced the corporate tax rate from 35 percent to 21 percent, and limited the state and local tax deduction to $10,000 of taxable income.
Republican Era (2017–Present)
Claudia L. Tenney’s tenure in Congress has been defined by fierce loyalty to her party and to President Donald Trump. In 2018, she lost a closely watched rematch against Democratic state Assemblyman Anthony Brindisi, making New York’s 22nd district the most pro-Trump district in the nation flipped by a Democrat that year. She reclaimed the seat in 2020 in one of the closest U.S. House races in the country, ultimately declared the winner by 109 votes on February 5, 2021, after a lengthy districtwide recount.
Following redistricting, Tenney ran in the newly drawn 24th congressional district in 2022, winning the Republican primary with 54 percent of the vote and handily winning the general election with 64 percent in the strongly Republican district. In Congress, she continued her conservative advocacy, voting against the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, opposing federal vaccine mandates, casting the sole vote against the Respect for Marriage Act among New York’s House delegation, and co-sponsoring the Protect Children’s Innocence Act. In February 2025, she introduced a bill to make Donald Trump’s birthday a federal holiday, underscoring her continued alignment with the President.
Notable Events and Milestones
Among Claudia L. Tenney’s most defining career moments was her 2020 rematch against Anthony Brindisi, which remained uncalled for weeks and drew national attention. In January 2021, then-President Trump falsely claimed at a Georgia rally that votes in her race were being counted fraudulently; Tenney shared a video of the speech without disputing his claims, though she later condemned the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. Her introduction of legislation to designate Trump’s birthday as a federal holiday in February 2025 cemented her reputation as one of the President’s most loyal congressional allies.
Claudia Tenney Career Wins
Claudia L. Tenney’s electoral record reflects a steady rise through Upstate New York’s Republican ranks, culminating in a U.S. House career marked by hard-fought victories and recurring comebacks. From her first Assembly win in 2010 to her decisive 2022 victory in the 24th district, she has demonstrated a consistent ability to win in conservative-leaning territory and to rebound after narrow defeats.
Congressional Highlights
Tenney’s breakthrough congressional win came in 2016, when she captured New York’s 22nd district with 44 percent of the vote in a three-way general election against Kim Myers and Martin Babinec. Her most recent victory came in 2022, when she won the Republican primary in the new 24th district with 54 percent and the general election with 64 percent, reflecting the district’s strong Republican lean. Her 2020 rematch against Anthony Brindisi, ultimately decided by 109 votes after a recount, remains one of the closest U.S. House contests in modern history.
Other Wins and Achievements
Beyond her congressional races, Tenney’s 2010 win for the New York State Assembly made her the first woman to represent her district, and in 2012, the Conservative Party of New York State honored her as the state’s most conservative legislator. These early wins laid the foundation for her congressional career and cemented her standing within the state’s conservative movement.
Claudia Tenney Family
Family Background and Political Lineage
Claudia L. Tenney comes from a family deeply rooted in Upstate New York’s legal and business communities. Her father, John R. Tenney, served as a New York State Supreme Court Justice, giving her early exposure to the legal profession. Her mother, Cynthia Tenney, came from the family that founded Mid-York Press, a commercial printing company established in 1946 in Sherburne, Chenango County, which Claudia later co-owned.
Personal Life
Claudia L. Tenney resides in Cleveland, New York, just inside the boundaries of her congressional district. She and her ex-husband, Wayne Cleary Jr., have one son, Wayne “Trey” Ralph Cleary III, who received an appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy in 2009 and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps in May 2013. Tenney is a Presbyterian.