Often times in politics, name is the game. And name recognition is one of the first hurdles a new candidate for Congress must overcome.

But it helps if you have run before.

As the 2024 election season gets underway, the all important House of Representatives races in New York have quite the collection of familiar names — those who have run for Congress or even served in Congress in the past.

The first contest in New York will be next month in the special election to fill former Rep. George Santos’ seat on Long Island. The Democrats’ designated candidate is the seat’s former holder, Tom Suozzi, who served from 2017 to 2022 before mounting an unsuccessful run for governor. He is running against Republican Mazi Pilip in the highly anticipated contest.

And he’s not the only one who wants his old job back. Nearby in the Hudson Valley's 17th District, former Democratic Rep. Mondaire Jones is challenging Republican Rep. Mike Lawler. Jones only served one term from 2021 to 2022, but declined to run again after the redistricting process would’ve pitted him against former Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney.

In other parts of the state, there are former party nominees who want another shot at the incumbent. Democrat Laura Gillen is running again in the 4th District to challenge Republican Rep. Anthony D'Esposito. Republican Tina Forte is running again in the 14th District to challenge Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

Further north, Democrat Josh Riley is running again in the 19th District in what could be a rematch from 2022 against Republican Rep. Marc Molinaro. Democrat Steven Holden, who ran against Republican Rep. Claudia Tenney in 2022 in the 24th District is now running against Rep. Elise Stefanik in the 21st. And on Wednesday, Democrat Nate McMurray announced he would be running in Western New York's 26th District after coming up short against Republican candidates in both 2018 and 2020.

Others who wanted to be their party’s nominee in 2022 but came in second are hoping for redemption. In Central New York's 22nd District, Democrat Sarah Klee Hood is running again after finishing slightly behind Francis Conole in 2022. Likewise in the 24th, Republican Mario Fratto is once again challenging Claudia Tenney for the GOP nod.

This is not altogether unusual. In 2020, there were a number of congressional races across New York that were exact rematch contests from 2018.

Then there is a familiar name who did not previously run for Congress, but for another office. In the Hudson Valley's 18th District, Republican Alison Esposito is challenging Democratic Rep. Pat Ryan. Esposito was the Republican nominee for lieutenant governor in 2022 alongside Lee Zeldin.

There’s still time for more familiar faces to jump in the ring. The filing deadline in New York for congressional bids is April 4. Primary elections will be held on June 25.