After a long battle followed by days of protracted deal-making, the New York State Senate voted Friday night to legalize same-sex marriage in the Empire State. The historic yet divisive measure passed by a narrow margin of 33 votes to 29. The vote will make New York the sixth state – and the largest one [...]
Guy Velella, the former Republican politician from the Bronx whose career ended in scandal, died Thursday morning after suffering from lung cancer, according to published reports. He was 66. Velella, once an assemblyman and senator in Albany, had served less than 200 days in jail after a 2004 conviction for bribery conspiracy. He and his [...]
Assemblyman Jose Peralta has won Tuesday’s special election for the 13th State Senate District. He will now represent parts of Jackson Heights, East Elmhurst and Corona. It was a heated race between Peralta and his main challenger, former State Senator Hiram Monserrate who ran as an Independent hoping to win back his old seat. Monserrate [...]
A poll shows that a New York state senator trying to reclaim the seat he was expelled from last month is trailing by a large margin ahead of Tuesday’s special election in Queens. The Siena College poll finds that only 15 percent of likely voters support former Sen. Hiram Monserrate. He originally won the seat [...]
Republican gubernatorial hopeful Rick Lazio received a boost of political support Wednesday from former governor George Pataki. Pataki, a three-term governor, said Lazio is the right choice to clean up the dysfunctional government in Albany. “I believe the right person, the best person for the party, and more importantly for the state, is Rick Lazio,” [...]
Douglas L. Hoffman rode a strong wave of conservative activism to a second-place finish in last fall’s special election in the 23rd Congressional District. Now the Lake Placid accountant — and adopted son of the Tea Party movement — is back for a second try, but not without some competition. Mr. Hoffman formally entered the [...]
The New York Senate has passed a resolution opposing trials of terrorists being held in New York City. The resolution passed Tuesday urges President Barack Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder to move trials of those linked to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks back to the military tribunal system. Republican state Sen. Vincent Leibell introduced [...]
Former Democratic City Councilman David Weprin kept a family tradition alive Tuesday night by winning a special election for the State Assembly. Weprin easily beat his Republican opponent, Bob Friedrich. The seat in the 24th Assembly District, which comprises part of Queens, has been held by both his father and brother. In recent days, the [...]
It’s hard to get a fresh face in Albany. Almost all incumbent lawmakers get returned to office every two years. Tuesday’s special election offers the rare opportunity to make a change. The 15th Assembly District seat in Nassau was vacated when Republican Rob Walker of Hicksville left to serve in the Mangano administration. This district [...]
State Sen. John DeFrancisco announced today he will run for a 10th term in office this year. “I can say unequivocally this is not the time (to retire),” DeFrancisco said from his campaign headquarters at 321 W. Onondaga St., flanked by dozens of supporters. DeFrancisco, R-Syracuse, who was first elected to the Senate in 1992, [...]
