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"This (Lee's resignation) came after a media frenzy after reports surfaced that he allegedly sent provocative pictures of himself, along with e-mails, to a woman on the internet."

BREAKING NEWS: Democrat Kathy Hochul wins special election for US House seat in NY

As of this writing, Democrat Kathy Hochul leads Republican Jane Corwin and Democrat-turned-"tea party" candidate Jack Davis with 47.1 percent of the vote to 42.5 percent and 9.2 percent, respectively. New York's 26th Congressional District leans Republican, and so the party spin machines are already in overdrive trying to explain meaning of the election. Democrats (many of whom were adamant just six months ago that elections were about the economy and not policy positions) are claiming that this represents a massive upset victory in a district that John McCain won by six points, and that the race had become a...

Tuesday’s special election win by Democrat Kathy Hochul was the result of Democratic scare tactics, and not actually a referendum on the reality of his Medicare plan, House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan said in his first comments after the polls closed in Western New York. “I saw the ads,” Ryan said. “I saw burning people’s Medicare cards. If you can scare seniors into thinking that their current benefits are being affected, that’s going to have an effect. And that is exactly what took place here. So yes, yes, it’s demagoguery, it’s scaring seniors.” Ryan also chalked up Hochul’s win...

The Dems picked off a strong GOP seat last night, and they want you to think it was about Medicare? The Associated Press: Medicare Overhaul Proposal Causing GOP StressThe New York Times: Democrat Wins GOP Seat; Rebuke Seen To Medicare PlanLos Angeles Times: Medicare Proposal May Have Cost GOP A House Seat In New YorkThe Associated Press: Medicare Key To Shocking Dem Win In NY House RaceABC News: Referendum On Medicare? Democrat Wins Special Election In GOP-Leaning NY-26CBS: Kathy Hochul's Special Election Triumph Sends Republicans Ominous Medicare Messageh/t Mr. Pinko at iOwnTheWorld Simple common sense should tell anyone that...

Follow results here: http://www.buffalonews.com/ Currently with 45% reporting, Hochul (D) 48%, Corwin (R) 42%, Davis (TP) 8%

Apparently anticipating a tight race, Republican Jane Corwin took the first step toward a recount by getting a court order from the New York Supreme Court preventing a certification of a winner in the special election in New York’s 26th district, taking place today, until a show-cause hearing is held before a judge later this week, the Buffalo News reports. The order was signed by State Supreme Court Justice Russell P. Buscaglia, following a petition filed by Corwin on Monday. The show-cause hearing would be on Thursday, at the earliest. Until that court hearing, “the judge also impounded all voting...

CountdownFive things to watch in NY-26. The special House election in western New York on Tuesday may or may not be a referendum on Rep. Paul Ryan’s budget, but it certainly has been a circus. The mess began when Rep. Chris Lee (R.), the 26th district’s second-term backbencher, resigned in February after sending shirtless pictures to a potential paramour. Since then, the race to fill the remainder of his term has gone wild. Republican Jane Corwin has garnered thousands of YouTube clicks for all the wrong reasons. Democrat Kathy Hochul has depicted Ryan as a modern-day Mr. Potter. Jack Davis,...

WASHINGTON -- Democrats are grossly exaggerating Republican Medicare reform plans in ads in the local race for Congress, which "has become a national test market for distorted political claims," a nonpartisan watchdog group said. [Snip] Democratic groups are airing ads attacking Corwin for supporting a GOP budget plan that, for those under age 55, converts Medicare from a guaranteed government benefit to a system where the government subsidizes health insurance that seniors would buy. "Democrats are claiming this is tantamount to doing away with Medicare -- but that's far from the truth," FactCheck wrote. [Snip] "For example, a new ad...

Raleigh, N.C. – Democrat Kathy Hochul continues to appear poised for an upset victory in Tuesday's special election for Congress in New York's 26th Congressional District. She is polling at 42% to 36% for Republican nominee Jane Corwin and 13% for Tea Party candidate Jack Davis. Since a PPP poll of the race two weeks ago Hochul has gained 7 points of support and Corwin has gained 5 while Davis has dropped by 11. It appears that Hochul has done a good job of staying above the fray as the campaign has taken on an increasingly negative tenor in its...

Buffalo SwingA Medicare proxy war and tea-party squabbles shake up a special House election in western New York. For decades, the late congressman Jack Kemp was western New York’s conservative champion. A tough supply-sider and former Buffalo Bills quarterback, Kemp personified the region’s grit. Since Kemp left office, the area’s blue-collar factory towns and sprawling farms, which constitute much of New York’s 26th congressional district, have remained solid Republican territory: Sen. John McCain won here, as did George W. Bush. Until this week, NY-26 was widely expected to remain safely in GOP hands. Republicans enjoy a 26,000-voter registration edge, and...

NY-26 special election may not be in the forefront of conservative minds, but the race has serious national implications: "A win by the Democrat in this Republican district -- even if created by a phony Tea Party candidate siphoning off votes from the Republican-- will be spun as a major victory for Obama.  You will hear nothing but how it signals Obama's turnaround, how it reflects Obama's new found popularity after the bin Laden kill, and how it signals unhappiness with Republicans.  You will not hear a word in the MSM about the fact that Davis is not a real...