Democrat Patrick Nelson said he has launched a bid to unseat Tedisco in November in order to satisfy the unmet needs of district residents struggling with increasing costs in health care, utilities and property taxes. “We have the most experienced legislator in Albany,” Nelson said. “He’s been there for 43 years. With experience should come the benefit of being good at your job. We have needs all over the district and we have a state senator who has shown that he is not able to deliver on these things. … At this moment we are in, with a crisis of weaponized incompetence manufactured by the federal government, our communities need more than a ceremonial senator. We need someone who can make changes at a statewide level.” Nelson, who is 36 and has worked as a staffer in both the state Assembly and Senate, points to Tedisco’s most recent ranking on a list compiled by the Center of Effective Lawmaking at the University of Virginia and Vanderbilt University that rates lawmakers' effectiveness based on their ability to advance their priorities through the legislative process. For the 2023-2024 session, Tedisco ranked second-to-last among Republican senators, who are in the minority party. In an emailed statement, Tedisco claims he has effectively worked across the aisle to pass 54 bills over the last few years and criticized his challenger’s campaign. “First and foremost, I believe taxpayers across the board are tired of negative attacks and those who have presented policies and agendas that have caused not only the affordability concern but also the exodus out of our beautiful state,” Tedisco wrote. “Ageism and negative attacks are a bad way to introduce yourself to the voters. I guess I can thank him for highlighting how effective I’ve been over the years against overwhelming odds in passing common-sense legislation and advancing policies to help enhance the quality of life for people.” Nelson disagreed with Tedisco’s comments, claiming that the Republicans like him are not doing enough to help New Yorkers afford health care, which is Nelson’s top campaign issue. If elected, he wants to find a way to replace Affordable Care Act subsidies, which expired this month and drove up costs. He estimated that 10,000 residents in the district, which spans Schenectady and Saratoga counties, depend on the ACA for health care. “We need to backfill those subsidies,” Nelson said. “I feel very deeply about the people whose lives are upended and can’t make next chemotherapy appointment or their next physical therapy appointment or get that preventative test that keeps those terrible things at bay so we can have happier and healthier and longer lives.” He says the ACA subsidies in New York make up less than 1% of the state budget. “We have sources of revenue we can tap into, in terms of the very wealthy New Yorkers,” Nelson said. “They threaten to leave, but it doesn’t happen. If they do leave, we will make more wealthy New Yorkers. Wealthy people don’t make New York. New York makes people wealthy.” He would also like for all public employees working for villages, towns, cities and schools to participate in one comprehensive health insurance plan, referred to as The Empire Plan. Nelson said that would lower costs for schools and municipalities, which could, in turn, lead to property tax reductions. Nelson is also interested in legislation that limits the use of artificial intelligence to make decisions about health, finances, utilities and other essential needs for New Yorkers. “We are going to have to deal with the emergence of artificial intelligence,” Nelson said. “I have worked with artificial intelligence researchers. I understand the benefits that can be brought to our community. At the same time, we can’t allow it to take over. I’m planning on introducing a proposal to protect the rights of all New Yorkers to talk to a human being in all matters of health care, financial transactions and governmental relations and ensure the final decisions in all those areas are made by human beings. We don’t want decisions that could cost someone their life (to) be determined by a computer algorithm.” He is also a proponent of renewable energy and worked with the town and St. Peter’s Parish to install electric vehicle charging stations in Stillwater. “We need leaders who want to build a sustainable future,” he said. “That means keeping up with our environmental commitments. Climate change is still real, and a threat, and we have a lot of ground we have to make up.” Nelson, a Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute graduate, was one of five Democrats to launch a campaign in 2018 seeking to unseat Rep. Elise Stefanik in New York's 21st Congressional District. But Nelson failed to clear the Democratic primary, garnering fewer than 2,000 votes. In the coming weeks, Nelson will be reaching out to residents throughout the 44th district. “I’m ready to work with anyone to advance a community cause,” Nelson said. “I’m not running to be a senator for myself. I’m running to be a senator for all of the people of the 44th District.”