Republican Anthony Constantino, on the verge of securing a New York congressional seat, used his victory speech to call on Donald Trump to release Sean “Diddy” Combs from prison.
Constantino, 44, claimed victory in the race while holding a narrow lead, with more than 95 percent of the vote counted, according to The New York Times.
He had received 51 percent of the vote, compared with 49 percent for Democrat Blake Gendebien.
The closely fought contest unfolded in a district Trump carried by 20 points in 2024 and where outgoing Representative Elise Stefanik won by 24 points.
“I think President Trump should consider freeing Diddy. This is a historic New Yorker who did great things for New York State,” Constantino said during his victory address.
Combs is serving a 50-month federal prison sentence after being convicted of transportation to engage in prostitution. Trump has already ruled out granting him a pardon.
Constantino financed his campaign with a $17 million personal loan and had spent $14.7 million by mid-October, according to Federal Election Commission records. He made his fortune as chief executive of the printing company StickerMule.
He accepted no contributions from individual donors or interest groups and received only $7,000 in transfers from other political committees. Local and national Republican leaders also declined to support him in the primary, backing Assemblyman Robert Smullen instead.
Constantino speaks at a campaign rally in Syracuse, New York, in October
New York Republican congressional candidate Anthony Constantino speaks as US President Donald Trump looks on during a campaign rally at The Oncenter in Syracuse, New York, US, October 9, 2026
Constantino did receive Trump’s endorsement in the primary, helped by his friendship with Donald Trump Jr.
The likely incoming congressman also attacked the media during his victory speech and ordered a reporter to leave his election-night event.
“To those of you in the evil media who aren’t bad people, guess what? I have news for you. You’re evil too, because you won’t expose the bad ones among you,” he said.
Gesturing toward one journalist, he continued: “Look at that ***hole right there. Take a picture of him… You’re a bunch of ***holes.”
He then focused on a reporter from local station Channel 7, saying: “This guy is looking at me. Get him out. Kick him out, kick him out. Just kick him out, get him out of here right now. You’re just a rude person.”
Constantino stands in front of a “Vote for Trump” sign on the roof of his printing company, Sticker Mule, in Amsterdam, New York, in April
“Get out of here. If you want to be tough on me, get out,” Constantino continued. “I’m not playing games. You deleted two of my interviews.”
Don Coon, chairman of the Jefferson County Republican Committee, condemned the remarks.
“He likes to call people names, and he likes to be Trump-esque in his delivery. I just think it’s silly,” Coon told WWNY-TV. “I don’t think he would speak to his customers the way he was speaking to people last night.”
Liz Joy, a former congressional candidate and local Republican leader whom Constantino had called “evil” and urged to leave politics, also criticized him.
“Leadership requires building bridges; Constantino continues to burn them,” she wrote on X.
Joy said Constantino was responsible for turning a district with a Republican voter-registration advantage of nearly 100,000 into a tightly contested race, despite having a $17 million campaign war chest.
She also posted a text message sent by Constantino at 3 a.m. in which he called her a “scumbag” and demanded that she resign.
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