The battle for this tossup New York House seat is going nuclear. <\/p>\n
Republican Hudson Valley Rep. Mike Lawler<\/a> is pitching a plan to reopen the Indian Point power plant in a bid to reverse New Yorkers\u2019 skyrocketing energy bills.<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cThe fact is, there\u2019s no better-positioned site for energy generation in the Hudson Valley than Indian Point. The transmission lines are already built and sitting there idle,\u201d Lawler told The Post in a recent interview.<\/p>\n Rep. Mike Lawler is seen during his re-election campaign on Sunday, April 12, 2026, in Nanuet, NY. Tomas E. Gaston for NY Post<\/p>\n \u201cThat site supplied a quarter of this region\u2019s power before Albany shut it down, and electricity costs have jumped 58 percent since then,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n \u201cNew York should be leading on next-generation nuclear, and it should start right here at Indian Point.\u201d<\/p>\n The two-term congressman\u2019s campaign slammed his Democratic rival, Cait Conley, for vehemently opposing reopening Indian Point, which closed in 2021 under then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo.<\/p>\n A general view of the Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant is seen from Stony Point, NY, on Wednesday, July 5, 2017. Christopher Sadowski<\/p>\n \u201cCait Conley told a debate audience that Indian Point is \u2018probably why I glow at night,\u2019 and told a Sierra Club forum that reopening it is \u2018dumb,\u2019\u201d said Lawler campaign spokesman Ciro Riccardi.<\/p>\n \u201cHudson Valley families staring down electric bills that are up 58 percent aren\u2019t laughing.\u201d<\/p>\n The mothballed plant, which provided 25% <\/a>of New York City\u2019s electricity with zero-emissions nuclear energy, is located along the Hudson River in the village of Buchanan in northern Westchester, part of the swing 17th House District.<\/p>\n Andrew Cuomo speaks to press and supporters at Casa Belvedere in Staten Island, NY, on Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2025. LP Media<\/p>\n It\u2019s closure coincided with Cuomo and Democrats in the state legislature approving a controversial climate change law that set the state on a swift embrace of renewable energy. <\/p>\n The law was scaled back by this year by Cuomo\u2019s successor, Gov. Kathy Hochul, who feared the green energy mandates would trigger even higher costs as she seeks re-election in November.<\/p>\n The Democrat, who was lieutenant governor when Indian Point closed, sought to distance herself from Cuomo\u2019s decision, saying it was \u201cdone in haste.\u201d <\/p>\n But she opposes reopening a nuclear plant at the site.<\/p>\n Lawler visited Indian Point<\/a> in March with US Energy Secretary Chris Wright, urging Hochul to reopen the facility.<\/p>\n Lawler\u2019s campaign, meanwhile, accused Conley of caving to radical environmental activists, and of having \u201cno energy plan.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cCait Conley won\u2019t say one critical word about the Albany Democrats who broke this grid, because the radical climate activist base she answers to won\u2019t allow it,\u201d Riccardi said. <\/p>\n Cait Conley speaks at Politico\u2019s annual AI and Tech Summit on Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024, in Washington, DC. Getty Images<\/p>\n \u201cShe\u2019d rather keep her endorsements while your utility bills climb higher.\u201d<\/p>\n Voters in recent polls cited pocketbook concerns such as the overall high cost of living in New York<\/a> \u2013and gas and electric bills in particular \u2014 as top concerns<\/a>.<\/p>\n A recent analysis of federal data found that New York has the third-highest electricity costs in the country, trailing only Hawaii and California.<\/p>\n Conley promoted her opposition to reopening Indian Point during the Democratic primary, and defends it now, calling the facility \u201cbroken and decrepit.\u201d<\/p>\n The Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant closed in 2021 under Cuomo\u2019s term. Christopher Sadowski<\/p>\n The energy platform on Conley\u2019s campaign website talks of \u201cstopping Mike Lawler\u2019s drive to reopen Indian Point\u201d and of instead \u201cinvesting in clean energy, expanding federal investments in solar, wind, and geothermal projects.\u201d<\/p>\n Conley, in a statement to The Post, took a shot at Lawler for previously serving as an energy lobbyist, for a natural gas advocacy group called New Yorkers for Affordable Energy.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s no wonder that former utility lobbyist Mike Lawler is willing to do the utility companies\u2019 bidding and reopen broken and decrepit Indian Point,\u201d Conley said.<\/p>\n \u201cIf these monopolies can contribute tens of thousands to Mike Lawler\u2019s campaign and give their CEOs million-dollar bonuses, there\u2019s no reason they should be raising rates for working families.\u201d<\/p>\n She vowed, \u201cWhen I\u2019m in Congress, I\u2019ll ensure households across the Hudson Valley are no longer crushed under the weight of soaring energy bills by holding these monopolies accountable, mandating rates be tied to better services, capping CEO bonuses, and increasing our energy supply through investment in projects that utilize our natural resources.\u201d<\/p>\n The Indian Point nuclear plant debate shows a clear split between the candidates on a burning issue zapping voters.<\/p>\n Conley has touted hydro power from Quebec down to the city via transmission lines to make up for the power lost from Indian Point, rather than reopen a nuclear plant in Buchanan. The 339-mile Champlain Hudson Power Express is now online.<\/p>\n