Steve Holden is calling out Rep. Claudia Tenney after a group of local residents was removed by law enforcement while attempting to speak with her in Canandaigua.
Holden, a Democrat and congressional candidate for New York’s 24th District, says roughly 20 constituents — including veterans, teachers, and parents — gathered peacefully outside Tenney’s office on Tuesday. Their goal: voice concerns about her voting record and decisions in Washington.
Rather than meet with the group, Tenney allegedly had them removed from the property. Holden called the move “cowardice,” and said it silenced the very people Tenney was elected to represent.
A spokesman for Congresswoman Tenney responded on Thursday morning. “This report is false. No one from Congresswoman Tenney’s Office asked for anyone to be removed. The individuals were outside the building, not inside her Canandaigua office. Congresswoman Tenney’s Office would never remove, or ask to remove, anyone for peacefully expressing their views.”
“These were our friends and neighbors,” Holden said in a statement. “They posed no threat. Their only request was that their representative listen.”
Holden, a 20-year U.S. Army veteran, said he was disturbed by how the situation was handled. “I didn’t serve this country to see Americans treated with such disregard for exercising their right to assemble and speak freely.”
He also criticized what he described as a pattern of disconnection from Tenney. “The real threat isn’t a few peaceful citizens on a sidewalk,” he said. “It’s a representative who has lost touch with the realities her constituents face.”
Holden says he’ll continue to stand with voters who feel ignored. “I’m not scared, and I’m not backing down,” he said. “The people of upstate New York deserve respect, accountability, and a voice in their own government.”
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