Free Republic

SCHENECTADY – They had no luck with former Gov. Andrew Cuomo but now a pair of Schenectady-area lawmakers are asking Gov. Kathy Hochul for help in restoring pensions for more than 1,000 people who worked at the now-closed St. Clare’s Hospital. “Unfortunately, our previous governor refused to ever meet with or listen to the concerns of the pensioners. We know you have a tremendous amount on your plate, we respectfully ask you to please set aside a few minutes in the near future to meet with us and the leader of the St. Clare’s Pensioners Recovery Alliance so we and...

The budget’s passage means the board is spared from having to adopt a contingency budget of $165.5 million, which would have increased the tax levy by 15.8 percent. District officials said state law locked them into a formula that used the inflation rate plus costs from increased enrollment. “Nobody wants to do a contingency,” Ely said. That possibility had prompted Assemblyman Jim Tedisco, R-Glenville, to craft a bill mandating that a contingency budget always be below a budget previously rejected by voters. He also said that using increased enrollment figures when calculating the budget is “totally inappropriate. “Whether this passed...

Democrat Scott Murphy has lengthened a narrow lead over Republican Jim Tedisco in New York's special House election that now appears headed toward further legal challenges, even though a top Republican predicts the race is lost. "We lost the special election in New York. It's gone," said former Virginia Rep. Thomas M. Davis III, a veteran election vote-counter and former chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee.....

Jim Tedisco (R) vs. Scott Murphy (D) LIVE results open thread. Turnout looks fairly light so far. Polls close at 9 PM Eastern Please post live results and (if you live in district) some on the ground updates.

Is the special election in New York's 20th district a referendum on the national political environment - on President Barack Obama, Washington, D.C.'s handling of the American International Group bonus scandal, the economic stimulus package and the national reputations of the two parties? Or, rather, is it about the skills and appeal of the two candidates? It's about both. Republican Jim Tedisco initially appeared to possess the most important qualities for the brief campaign. A veteran of the New York state Legislature, he is known as "Mr. Schenectady" and has deep roots in the area. He also appeared to benefit...

Democrat Scott Murphy has taken a 4 percentage point lead over Republican Jim Tedisco in the race for the 20th Congressional District, according to the latest Siena Research Institute poll. That's outside the 3.2 percent margin of error. However, by a 10-point margin, more voters think Tedisco, an Assemblyman, will end up beating Murphy in the special election, the poll said. Murphy, a venture capitalist, erased a 4 percentage point deficit in just two weeks. Tedisco’s campaign is seen as being more negative than Murphy’s by a 44-25 percent margin, according to the Siena Research Institute survey. Siena Research Institute...

The special election in New York's 20th district is just one week away and the level of national interest -- and involvement -- is growing rapidly. The two national parties as well as a variety of interest groups are weighing in on the race and, although both sides are downplaying expectations, there is much at stake in the contest. What's clear is that businessman Scott Murphy, the Democrat, has the momentum over state Assemblyman Jim Tedisco (R), and a loss for Republicans could be potentially disastrous for a party looking for good news. The last week of any campaign has...

National Democrats and the Obama White House are moving to counter criticism that party bigwigs have largely been AWOL in a New York special House election. The DNC, which has given candidate Scott Murphy $5,000, is now sending another $5,000 to aid the New York Democratic Party in the March 31 contest to fill former Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand’s seat, according to a source familiar with the contribution. And President Barack Obama has signed an e-mail urging support for Murphy and blasted it to a list of more than 50,000 allies in and around the upstate district. “Scott has the kind...

The race to fill a Capital Region congressional seat has turned into a multimillion-dollar affair. And the local news media is loving it. Republican Jim Tedisco, of Glenville, and Democrat Scott Murphy, of Glens Falls, are the two major-party candidates competing to fill the vacant seat in the state’s sprawling 20th congressional district, which covers part or all of six area counties. U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) had held the seat before she was appointed to fill Hillary Clinton’s Senate seat. Through campaign donations and personal loans, Tedisco and Murphy each raised more than $1 million from Jan. 1 through...

Democrat Scott Murphy outraised Republican Jim Tedisco in the run-up to the March 31 special election, according to newly-released FEC fundraising reports. Murphy raised $900,000, and supplemented that total with a $250,000 loan to his campaign. Tedisco raised $830,000 and put in $200,000 of his own money. Murphy reported $444,000 on hand in his campaign account, while Tedisco banked $467,000. The reports cover the period between January 1 and March 11; the candidates weren’t selected until February. In a sign of the national attention the special election is receiving, Tedisco’s campaign received checks from the Michigan, Indiana and New Mexico...

Despite a considerable Republican enrollment advantage, the Democrat seeking to replace Kirsten Gillibrand in the 20th Congressional District has cut into his Republican opponent's lead in the race. According to new poll out today from Siena College, Scott Murphy of Glens Falls only trails Assemblyman Jim Tedisco of Schenectady 45 percent to 41 percent with less than three weeks to go before the March 31 special election. The phone survey of 712 likely voters was conducted March 9-10 and has a margin of error of 3.7 percentage points. The GOP holds the edge in voter enrollment in the district, which...

ALBANY—Scott Murphy is a rich carpetbagger, out-of-touch with the needs of the average voters in the 20th Congressional District he hopes to represent because he actually grew up in Missouri. He hasn't even voted in recent elections. He was a lobbyist, for Pete's sake, taking his clients to the Cotton Bowl and lavishing them with expensive meals. As a "venture capitalist" he outsourced work overseas; that's probably why his campaign website isn't calling him "Mr. Jobs" anymore. Oh yeah: he cheats on his taxes—just like all those other Democrats, who have no problem voting to raise yours.As for Jim...

A new poll released by Jim Tedisco’s campaign suggests why Republicans rallied around his candidacy so quickly in the special election for Kirsten Gillibrand’s House seat. He’s well-known from his tenure as the Republicans’ state Assembly Leader, and well-liked — at least for now — by voters in New York’s 20th District. The poll, conducted by Public Opinion Strategies, shows that a 51 percent majority of voters view Tedisco favorably, while 13 percent hold an unfavorable impression. His 64 percent name identification is quite high for a first-time congressional candidate. Tedisco holds an early lead over Democratic businessman Scott Murphy,...

Tedisco meeting with Republican National Committee chairman NEW YORK -- The road to a special election continues for both candidates hoping to become the next congressman for the 20th district. Assembly Minority Leader Jim Tedisco is meeting with newly-elected Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele. Steele is Maryland's lieutenant governor and will now run the show for the GOP. He was elected on Friday. Tedisco's meeting with Steele comes one day after opening his campaign headquarters in Clifton Park. The Democrats' pick, Glens Falls businessman Scott Murphy, is also gaining support. Murphy joined Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and House Speaker Nancy...

Jim Tedisco: A name we know, a record we trust. ✓ Republican Leader of the New York State Assembly ✓ Proven record of fighting for real property tax relief, fiscal responsibility and more jobs ✓ Supports small businesses and growing our economy ✓ Stopped Governor Eliot Spitzer’s unlawful plan to give driver’s licenses to illegal aliens

Because Governor Paterson picked Gillibrand to replace Hillary Clinton, there will be a Special Election to replace Kirsten Gillibrand for congressperson. Call the New York State Republican Party, and tell them you want her to be replaced with a pro-life, conservative, and to please pick a pro-life, conservative like Assembly Minority Leader Tedesco, John Faso (who ran against Spitzer in the governor's race) and Assemblywoman Betty Little. All of these people were said to be strong possibilities, and all are pro-life, and conservative in every way.

Newly elected chairman of the Republican National Committee Michael Steele said he is focused on three races in his effort to rebuild the GOP after it endured worrying losses in November's elections that gave Democrats control of Congress and the White House. Steele, Maryland's former lieutenant governor and the first black to head the RNC, said one of the most critical battles for the GOP is to capture New York's 20th congressional seat -- formerly held by U.S. Sen. Kristen Gillibrand, D-N.Y. "It is the first of a series of races that are coming up that are going to be...