Alissa Ellman

Ellman grew up in Houghton, New York, a rural hamlet of fewer than 2,000 people, and news reports describe her as an Allegany County native. She earned a bachelor's degree from Niagara University in 2013.[5][2][8][1]

She served in the U.S. Army National Guard from 2001 to 2007 and describes herself as a disabled combat veteran; news reports say she served at Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan. Spectrum News reported that after her Army deployment ended in 2004 she worked as a military contractor in Afghanistan for four more years. She describes herself as a cancer survivor after toxic exposure in Afghanistan, and WRVO reported she was diagnosed with pheochromocytoma, a rare adrenal cancer.[1][2][3]

Ellman worked as a special education teacher before becoming an employee of the Department of Veterans Affairs, according to news reports and her Ballotpedia survey. WSKG reported that she became a teacher after leaving the military. Spectrum News reported that until 2025 she was a file clerk at the Buffalo VA.[1][2][3][9] She says her VA job in Buffalo was eliminated in the first round of federal staffing cuts in 2025, and WRVO reported she attended President Trump's March 2025 address to Congress as a guest of Sen. Chuck Schumer.[2][10]

Ellman announced her candidacy in July 2025. She won the June 23, 2026 Democratic primary over Diana Kastenbaum and faced Tenney in the November 3 general election.[2][8][3] She received 39.5% of the vote to Claudia Tenney's 60.4%, according to unofficial results reported by NBC News.[4]