HYDE PARK, N.Y.—In a packed room at the visitor center of Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum, Rep. Pat Ryan (D-N.Y.) vowed to address cost-of-living concerns in his second congressional term.

Public dignitaries such as Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul attended the Jan. 18 swearing-in ceremony for Ryan, who twice won a swing Hudson Valley district against competitive Republicans.

In fall 2024, Ryan defeated former New York City police commander and New York lieutenant governor contender Alison Esposito by a 14-percent margin in a district that includes all of Orange County and parts of Ulster and Dutchess counties.

Ryan carried Orange County, where Republicans dominate county politics, with a margin of 8.5 percentage points.

“Hudson Valley represents the best of the American spirit; it is where George Washington awarded the first Purple Heart in our country’s history, where Sojourner Truth walked over 10 miles to advocate for the freedom of her son,” Ryan said at the ceremony.

“And where President Franklin Delano Roosevelt guided us through some of the most trying times nearly a century ago.”

As ordinary people in his district face a challenging economy with an increased cost of living, Ryan said he would make affordability his immediate priority, potentially by shifting more tax burdens from working- and middle-class families to wealthy people and corporations.

For example, during the ongoing debate about revisions to the state and local tax deduction cap, Ryan has advocated getting rid of the $10,000-per-household cap entirely, as opposed to keeping the cap as a financial tool to rein in the national deficit.

He told The Epoch Times that he would also reintroduce his past bills regarding lowering mortgage rates to ramp up the housing stock, developing a national plan on food costs by conducting a comprehensive analysis of grocery prices, and making generic prescription drugs more available through changes to patent law.

“We are really focused on each category of where people are feeling that affordability crunch,” he said. “All of these issues are non-partisan issues, and there should be bipartisan consensus to work on them.”

When it comes to local projects, Ryan said he would continue to funnel federal earmarks back home to fund police agencies, fire departments, and emergency apparatus.

A fifth-generation Hudson Valley native and Kingston High School graduate, Ryan attended West Point and served two combat tours in Iraq, earning two Bronze Star medals, before working in the data analysis sector and founding a cybersecurity advisory firm.

He served as Ulster County executive during the COVID-19 pandemic years with a focus on stable taxes—the tax levy remained flat in his three budgets—economic growth, and green energy infrastructure.

Two major projects during his tenure were a court-approved deal to clean up hazardous waste on a former IBM site in the town of Ulster for further economic development and the development of affordable housing on a former jail site in Kingston with federal COVID-19 pandemic stimulus dollars.

After former Rep. Antonio Delgado was tapped to be lieutenant governor in May 2022, Ryan ran and prevailed in a special election for New York’s 19th Congressional District.

Several months later, he ran again in the redistricted 18th Congressional District and won against Republican contender and former state Assemblyman Colin Schmitt by a margin of 1 percentage point.

New York Attorney General Letitia James, Dutchess County Executive Sue Serino, Dutchess County Sheriff Kirk Imperati, and officials from Orange and Ulster counties also attended Ryan’s swearing-in ceremony.

Ryan lives in Gardiner with his wife and two young sons.