Blake Gendebien intends to seek the Democratic nomination to represent the North Country in Congress. (Provided photo)

A St. Lawrence County dairy farmer is throwing his hat in the ring for Congress in the anticipated special election for New York’s 21st Congressional District next year.

Blake Gendebien, the owner of Twin Mill Farms in Lisbon, announced last week on social media that he intends to seek the Democratic nomination to represent the North Country in Congress. Sitting Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, R-Schuylerville, is expected to step down from the seat she won re-election to in November early next year, when she’ll be appointed to be the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations for the Trump administration.

In a brief statement shared on Twitter, Gendebien highlighted his dairy farm and North Country roots.

“I know what it’s like to get up for work at 3:30 in the morning and make difficult decisions to keep my farm afloat,” he said. “The folks in the North Country work hard to barely make ends meet while career politicians in DC can’t get anything done.”

A spokesperson for Gendebien said he wasn’t available to speak with a reporter, but shared a further statement from the candidate.

“There aren’t enough farmers in Congress who understand what it is like to put in a day’s work,” he said. “Over the past six years our region has lost hundreds of farms. Agriculture is an economic driver in the North Country, and we deserve a Farm Bill that is delivered on time in order to provide certainty and security we need to thrive.”

The Farm Bill, a once-every-5-years legislative package that sets federal agricultural policies and establishes food benefit program guidelines, was last passed in 2019. Lawmakers passed a temporary extension in 2023 and expect to do so again this year, although lawmakers and agricultural experts have complained the terms of the 2019 bill are no longer fully aligned with the current agriculture markets.

Gendebien said he wants to be a representative for everyone.

“It’s not just farmers who are struggling,” he said. “It’s families, veterans and small businesses too. I’m running to be a voice for everyone who’s been left behind by the same old politics-as-usual gridlock.”

According to his LinkedIn webpage, Gendebien is a graduate of Penn State, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in agricultural business and management in 1999.

He owned a few businesses including Twin Mill Lubricants, a distributor of for a western New York-based oil company, until 2020, and Glow Skincare and Spa until 2019.

He also currently runs a new skincare line using ingredients from his farm, and with his wife is the cofounder of the Jules of Life foundation, a St. Lawrence County-based nonprofit for families facing pediatric cancer.

Gendebien is also vice chairman of Agri-Mark, a farmer owned northeastern dairy co-operative that owns the Cabot and McCadam brand names.

Gendebien’s announcement is fairly early — there is no office to seek election to currently. Under New York state law, the governor sets a special election when the lawmaker in office formally announces they are stepping down.

Stefanik is still the elected representative for NY-21, and is likely to continue representing the district into the new year before her formal nomination process begins after President-Elect Donald J. Trump is inaugurated in late January. The congresswoman has not publicly discussed her plans.

There won’t be a primary race either. The nominees will be selected by one of the four recognized parties in New York, with the Democrats and Republicans likely to lead the selection while the Working Families and Conservative parties either cross endorse or stay uninvolved, and a roughly three-month race between the two candidates will start.

But Gendebien and two other candidates; one other Democrat and a Republican, have already declared their candidacies.

The Republican, Anthony Constantino, is self-funding his campaign and has privately contacted the 15 county party committee chairs who will vote on the nomination.

The other Democrat, Steven W. Holden Sr. announced an exploratory committee to formalize the work of reaching voters and county chairs.

Gendebien wasn’t available to discuss what steps he’s taking to pursue Democrat leaders support in the nomination process, but he’s already fundraising with the Democratic platform ActBlue. A candidate has to file with the FEC after they raise $5,000, and the FEC’s public database shows no candidates by the name Gendebien.

There are plenty of other people quietly considering a campaign for Congress in NY-21 as well.

Local lawmakers of both parties, some local business leaders and other people who have no established public profile yet.

They and the party officials they’re talking with are generally keeping things quiet before the Congresswoman actually resigns her seat.