PREss release
Open Letter to Blake Gendebien
AN OPEN LETTER TO BLAKE GENDEBIEN
May 21, 2026
Blake Gendebien
Candidate, U.S. House of Representatives, NY-21
Blake for The North Country
PO Box 39
Lisbon, NY 13658
Blake,
Last week, I wrote you an open letter asking you to reconsider your decision to decline our debates. I did so because I believed then, as I believe now, that a debate is not merely a courtesy between candidates but an obligation we owe the people of this district and the Democratic Party. Your decision to accept honors that obligation, and I am grateful that you have chosen to meet it.
A debate is a cornerstone of the democratic process. It places us side by side, under the same pressure, answering the same questions in real time. By agreeing to stand on that stage, you are giving voters something no mailer, ad, or social post can: a fuller and more honest basis on which to make their decision on Election Day. That is important to the voters, and it speaks well of you that you have chosen to accept the invitation.
A debate strengthens the Democratic Party because it engages voters directly. Democratic voters in NY-21 want to feel heard, respected, and included. They want to see their candidates tested openly. By agreeing to debate, you are telling them that their voices and their questions matter enough to warrant a real public exchange of ideas. That kind of respect for the voter is exactly what builds the energy, the volunteer base, and the turnout our party needs in November.
In my first letter, I wrote that when a primary ends, the candidate who loses has a responsibility to the candidate who wins—that unity is not a slogan, but the real work of standing shoulder to shoulder with the nominee and asking your supporters to do the same. I also wrote that any candidate who expects party unity has a corresponding responsibility to meet the most basic requirements of the democratic process. By accepting this debate, you have met that responsibility, and in doing so you have made it possible for both of us to ask our supporters, in good conscience, to come together once the votes are counted.
So let me say it now, plainly and without reservation: when this primary is decided, I will stand with the winner. If the voters choose you, I will be proud to ask my supporters to rally behind your campaign, and I will work alongside you to defeat our Republican opponent and deliver for the people of the North Country. If the voters choose me, I will hope for the same from you, and I will be honored to have your voice and your supporters in the coalition we will need to build in November.
Thank you again, Blake, for accepting. I look forward to seeing you on the debate stage, to a primary our district can be proud of, and to standing together when the votes are counted.
Sincerely,
Stuart Amoriell
Candidate, U.S. House of Representatives
New York’s 21st District
The Committee to Elect Stuart Amoriell
2720 Main Street, Suite 5
Lake Placid, NY 12946
(518) 267-7049