George Conway, an outspoken critic of President Donald Trump, has filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission signaling a run for Congress as a Democrat. Conway is exploring a bid for New York’s 12th Congressional District, a Manhattan-based seat currently held by retiring Rep. Jerrold Nadler.
The co-founder of the anti-Trump Lincoln Project, Conway would enter a crowded Democratic primary that includes John F. Kennedy’s grandson, Jack Schlossberg, March for Our Lives coordinator Cameron Kasky, state Assembly members Alex Bores and Micah Lasher, and New York City Council member Erik Bottcher.
Newsweek has reached out to Conway Monday afternoon via his Instagram page for comment.
Conway, 62, is a Harvard and Yale Law School graduate who was previously married to former Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway and was once considered for a top legal post in the first Trump administration. He is currently a frequent contributor for left-leaning media company, The Bulwark, and hosts a podcast called “George Conway Explains it All.”
In a text response to Newsweek, Kasky, also a contributor for The Bulwark, wrote, “Bulwark primary. I love this. Time for some MeidasTouch guys to hop in.”
Speculation about Conway’s candidacy surfaced last month after he acknowledged hiring a Democratic pollster to assess a potential run.
George Conway: What to Know
Conway clerked for a federal judge and later built a successful career in private practice, becoming a partner at the law firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz. He has been widely regarded as an expert on constitutional law and Supreme Court litigation and was considered for the role of U.S. solicitor general early in Trump’s first term before withdrawing from consideration.
Conway gained national attention during the Trump presidencies for his frequent public critiques of the administration’s legal arguments and conduct, often aired through opinion columns and social media. In 2019, he co-founded the Lincoln Project, a group of anti-Trump Republicans that backed Democratic candidates and sought to sway conservative voters against Trump.
Manhattan Democratic Stronghold Faces Open-Seat Race
New York’s 12th Congressional District has been shaped for decades by the long career of Nadler, a seasoned legislator first elected to the U.S. House in 1992 after 16 years in the New York State Assembly. Nadler, a constitutional lawyer and prominent liberal voice, represented earlier versions of the district and its predecessors before winning the newly drawn Manhattan-based 12th in 2022, a seat that includes the Upper West and East Sides and Midtown and is among the most Democratic in the country.
Under his tenure, he has been a key figure on the House Judiciary Committee and a leading advocate for civil rights, infrastructure funding and national oversight, including playing significant roles in the impeachment proceedings of Trump. The district itself has a long history in Democratic hands and is densely urban, with high median incomes and a strong Democratic lean, and Nadler’s impending retirement after more than three decades opens a competitive primary for one of Manhattan’s most influential House seats.
Updates: 12/22/25, 12:56 p.m. ET: This article was updated with new information and remarks.
Updates: 12/22/25, 2:20 p.m. ET: This article was updated with new information and remarks.