Stein Wins Locally, Gillibrand, Paladino, Schneiderman Win Statewide
On a day that saw voters of all parties take part in their respective primary races, election results in many instances were surprising and unexpected. On the statewide level, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand easily defeated fellow Democrat Gail Goode in her re-election primary by a margin of 410,147 to 130,179. Goode was a government lawyer and an activist, and Gillibrand took office after being appointed to the senate to replace Hillary Clinton.
The most surprising victory of the night was in the Republican primary for governor. Rick Lazio, a former Congressman who ran against Hillary Clinton in 2000, had the support of the Republican Party establishment in his bid for the state’s top post, and it was widely expected that he would be the Republican candidate facing Andrew Cuomo, the Democratic candidate, in November.
Several months ago, Carl Paladino, a wealthy Buffalo-based developer entered the race, first as an independent candidate, on a platform of tax reform and other proposals. Not long after, he decided to pursue the Republican Party nomination and submitted petitions to challenge Rick Lazio in a Republican primary. During the campaign, nobody thought much of his chances to win the Republican primary, but on Tuesday, the political establishment across the state was shocked when the returns came in.
From the first reported results, Rick Lazio trailed Paladino badly, and throughout the night, his numbers did not improve. At one point, with more than half of the results in, Paladino led Lazio by a margin of more than 2-to-1. Ultimately, Paladino got 68% of the vote, or 272,898 votes, and Lazio had 38%, or 166,656 votes.
Republicans also held other primaries. In a race to be the Republican candidate challenging Senator Chuck Schumer in November, political consultant Jay Townsend defeated a former CIA worker, Gary Berntsen, 56% to 44%. Joseph DioGuardi edged out two other Republicans in the primary to challenge Senator Kirsten Gillibrand in the fall. DioGuardi had 42% of the vote, opponent David Malpass had 38%, and Bruce Blakeman had 21%. DioGuardi won by about 17,000 votes. Both Schumer and Gillibrand are heavily favored to win their respective elections in November.
The most widely watched primary this year was the race for attorney general. In a five-way primary, State Senator Eric Schneiderman narrowly defeated Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice, 34% to 32%. Schneiderman was trailing Rice for most of the night, but when all the results were in he held on to a 13,500-vote lead. Sean Coffey came in third with 16% of the vote, Assemblyman Richard Brodsky had 10% of the vote, and Eric Dinallo had 8% of the votes cast.
In the primary for Congress, Anthony Mele and York Kleinhandler ran against each other for the Republican nomination to challenge Democratic Congressman Eliot Engel in November. The race was tight all night, but unofficial returns have Kleinhandler winning by a margin of 3,225 to 3,046.
In local elections, the heated Democratic Primary for Ramapo Town Justice ended in a clear and decisive victory for sitting Judge David J. Stein. Stein, a former Councilman in Ramapo for 25 years, was challenged by Noah Weinberg, the former Social Services Commissioner of Rockland. Unofficial results have Stein winning by a margin of 3,674 to 2,102. In November, Stein will be the Democratic, Independence, and Working Families Parties candidate, while Weinberg will be on the Republican and Conservative lines.
In Suffern, Jo Corrigan and incumbent John Meehan won the Democratic primary for the village board, narrowly defeating former Trustee Jack Rosenberg and current Trustee Bill Schoenleber.
There were two primaries for the State Assembly seat currently held by Assemblyman Ken Zebrowski. Zebrowski, a Democrat, is being challenged by Republican Frank Sparaco in November. On Tuesday, the two ran against each other for the Independence Party line as well as the Working Families party nomination. Zebrowski won the Independence Party primary, but Sparaco seems to have edged Zebrowski for the Working Families line, according to unofficial results.
This election was also the first election using the new scan ballots. Under this system of voting, voters filled in a circle next to the name of the candidate they were voting for, and submitted that paper ballot into a machine that scanned and counted their votes. The new system, while more time consuming than the old one, is also supposed to be more secure and error-proof.
During the day of the election, many reported difficulties with the new system, including problems getting the ballot scanned properly, being handed the wrong ballot entirely, and general issues understanding the new voting process.
Issues that came up during the election will be addressed by election officials. With the new machines making their debut across the state on Tuesday, it is likely that changes or improvements made to the process will be done jointly, either through numerous county elections commissioners discussing the issues with each other, or with new directives coming from the state. There were very few major issues that arose, giving many hope that the minor ones can be dealt with before the full election in November.
The most surprising victory of the night was in the Republican primary for governor. Rick Lazio, a former Congressman who ran against Hillary Clinton in 2000, had the support of the Republican Party establishment in his bid for the state’s top post, and it was widely expected that he would be the Republican candidate facing Andrew Cuomo, the Democratic candidate, in November.
Several months ago, Carl Paladino, a wealthy Buffalo-based developer entered the race, first as an independent candidate, on a platform of tax reform and other proposals. Not long after, he decided to pursue the Republican Party nomination and submitted petitions to challenge Rick Lazio in a Republican primary. During the campaign, nobody thought much of his chances to win the Republican primary, but on Tuesday, the political establishment across the state was shocked when the returns came in.
From the first reported results, Rick Lazio trailed Paladino badly, and throughout the night, his numbers did not improve. At one point, with more than half of the results in, Paladino led Lazio by a margin of more than 2-to-1. Ultimately, Paladino got 68% of the vote, or 272,898 votes, and Lazio had 38%, or 166,656 votes.
Republicans also held other primaries. In a race to be the Republican candidate challenging Senator Chuck Schumer in November, political consultant Jay Townsend defeated a former CIA worker, Gary Berntsen, 56% to 44%. Joseph DioGuardi edged out two other Republicans in the primary to challenge Senator Kirsten Gillibrand in the fall. DioGuardi had 42% of the vote, opponent David Malpass had 38%, and Bruce Blakeman had 21%. DioGuardi won by about 17,000 votes. Both Schumer and Gillibrand are heavily favored to win their respective elections in November.
The most widely watched primary this year was the race for attorney general. In a five-way primary, State Senator Eric Schneiderman narrowly defeated Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice, 34% to 32%. Schneiderman was trailing Rice for most of the night, but when all the results were in he held on to a 13,500-vote lead. Sean Coffey came in third with 16% of the vote, Assemblyman Richard Brodsky had 10% of the vote, and Eric Dinallo had 8% of the votes cast.
In the primary for Congress, Anthony Mele and York Kleinhandler ran against each other for the Republican nomination to challenge Democratic Congressman Eliot Engel in November. The race was tight all night, but unofficial returns have Kleinhandler winning by a margin of 3,225 to 3,046.
In local elections, the heated Democratic Primary for Ramapo Town Justice ended in a clear and decisive victory for sitting Judge David J. Stein. Stein, a former Councilman in Ramapo for 25 years, was challenged by Noah Weinberg, the former Social Services Commissioner of Rockland. Unofficial results have Stein winning by a margin of 3,674 to 2,102. In November, Stein will be the Democratic, Independence, and Working Families Parties candidate, while Weinberg will be on the Republican and Conservative lines.
In Suffern, Jo Corrigan and incumbent John Meehan won the Democratic primary for the village board, narrowly defeating former Trustee Jack Rosenberg and current Trustee Bill Schoenleber.
There were two primaries for the State Assembly seat currently held by Assemblyman Ken Zebrowski. Zebrowski, a Democrat, is being challenged by Republican Frank Sparaco in November. On Tuesday, the two ran against each other for the Independence Party line as well as the Working Families party nomination. Zebrowski won the Independence Party primary, but Sparaco seems to have edged Zebrowski for the Working Families line, according to unofficial results.
This election was also the first election using the new scan ballots. Under this system of voting, voters filled in a circle next to the name of the candidate they were voting for, and submitted that paper ballot into a machine that scanned and counted their votes. The new system, while more time consuming than the old one, is also supposed to be more secure and error-proof.
During the day of the election, many reported difficulties with the new system, including problems getting the ballot scanned properly, being handed the wrong ballot entirely, and general issues understanding the new voting process.
Issues that came up during the election will be addressed by election officials. With the new machines making their debut across the state on Tuesday, it is likely that changes or improvements made to the process will be done jointly, either through numerous county elections commissioners discussing the issues with each other, or with new directives coming from the state. There were very few major issues that arose, giving many hope that the minor ones can be dealt with before the full election in November.
Posted by Reserve Ramapo at Monday, September 20, 2010 4:55:00 PM 
Categories: Reserve Ramapo, Democratic Party, Republican Party, Town Judge, Preserve Ramapo, Rockland County
Tags: New York Democratic Party David J. Stein Preserve Ramapo Reserve ramapo Ramapo
Categories: Reserve Ramapo, Democratic Party, Republican Party, Town Judge, Preserve Ramapo, Rockland County
Tags: New York Democratic Party David J. Stein Preserve Ramapo Reserve ramapo Ramapo
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