A hotly contested congressional race in the Hudson Valley just picked up another contender.

Democrat MaryAnn Carr is throwing her hat in the ring for the 17th Congressional District. Carr announced her candidacy to News 12's Tara Rosenblum.

"I'm excited to be in this race. I think I bring a lot to the table," she says. "This my official first time announcing it."

In her first interview as a candidate, the former Bedford Town Council Member told News 12 why she decided to throw her hat in the ring in the hotly contested race that helped the Republicans flip control of the House last year.

"The reason I'm running is because I just feel like people like myself, who are working middle class, Washington is not meeting the moment," she says.

Carr is a single working mom and a Westchester County information technology director.

She was first elected as councilwoman back in 2016 and was then tapped to fill the vacant role of town supervisor in 2021.

She says her political journey has humble beginnings.

"I don't come from money, I was born and raised in segregated Mississippi," says Carr.

Carr is the third Democrat to enter the race for the district, which covers parts of Westchester and all of Rockland County.

Katonah-Lewisboro school board member Liz Gereghty announced her run months ago, and former Rep. Mondaire Jones launched his comeback campaign two weeks ago - with some early polling already placing him as the primary front-runner.

WATCH: Mondaire Jones seeks Democratic nomination in 17th Congressional District

All of three of them are hoping for the chance to take on Michael Lawler, who amassed one of the largest campaign war chests of any freshman Republican candidate in the country, according to Federal Election Commission data released this past weekend.

WATCH: Federal Election Commission data released on political campaign fundraising

Carr says gun control and women's rights protections would be at the top of her priority list if elected.