Anthony Constantino, a Republican on the verge of securing a New York congressional seat, used his victory speech to call on Donald Trump to release Sean “Diddy” Combs from prison.
Constantino, 44, claimed victory in the race while holding a narrow lead, with more than 95 percent of the vote counted, according to The New York Times.
He led Democrat Blake Gendebien by 51 percent to 49 percent.
The closely fought contest unfolded in a district Trump carried by 20 points in 2024 and outgoing Representative Elise Stefanik won by 24 points.
“I think President Trump should consider freeing Diddy. This is a historic New Yorker who did great things for New York State,” Constantino said during his victory speech.
Combs is serving a 50-month federal prison sentence after being convicted of transportation to engage in prostitution. Trump has already ruled out granting him a pardon.
Constantino financed his campaign with a $17 million personal loan and had spent $14.7 million by mid-October, according to Federal Election Commission records. He built his fortune as the chief executive of printing company StickerMule.
The Republican accepted no contributions from individual donors or interest groups and received only $7,000 in transfers from other political committees. Local and national Republican leaders also declined to back him in the primary, instead supporting Assemblyman Robert Smullen.
Constantino speaks at a campaign rally in Syracuse, New York, in October
New York Republican congressional candidate Anthony Constantino speaks as US President Donald Trump looks on during a campaign rally at The Oncenter in Syracuse, New York, on October 9, 2026
Trump did endorse Constantino in the primary, partly because of his friendship with Donald Trump Jr.
The likely incoming congressman also took aim at the media during his victory speech, at one point ordering a reporter to leave his election-night event.
“To those of you in the evil media that aren’t bad people, guess what? I got news for you. You’re evil too, because you won’t expose the bad ones amongst you,” he said.
Pointing toward a journalist, Constantino added: “Look at that ***hole right there. Take a picture of him… You’re a bunch of ***holes.”
He then focused on a reporter from local station Channel 7, saying: “This guy is so he’s looking at me. Get, kick him, kick him out. Just kick him out, kick him out, get him out of here, kick him out right now. You’re just, you’re just a rude person.”
Constantino stands beside a “Vote for Trump” sign on the roof of his printing company, StickerMule, in Amsterdam, New York, in April
“Get out of here. If you want to be tough on me, get out,” Constantino continued. “I’m not playing games. You deleted two of my interviews.”
Don Coon, chair of the Jefferson County Republican Committee, condemned the Republican candidate’s behavior.
“He likes to call people names, and he likes to be Trump-esque in his delivery. I just think it’s silly,” Coon told WWNY-TV. “I don’t think that he would speak to his customers the way that he was speaking to people last night.”
Liz Joy, a former congressional candidate and local Republican leader whom Constantino had called “evil” and urged to leave politics, also criticized him.
“Leadership requires building bridges, Constantino continues to burn them,” she wrote on X.
Joy said Constantino was responsible for turning a district with a Republican voter-registration advantage of nearly 100,000 into a highly competitive race that he led by only a small margin, despite having a $17 million campaign war chest.
She also posted a text message sent by Constantino at 3 a.m. in which he called her a “scumbag” and demanded that she resign.
