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The 2010 congressional elections in New York were held on November 2, 2010 to determine representation in the state of New York in the United States House of Representatives. New York has 29 seats in the House, apportioned according to the 2000 United States Census. Representatives are elected for two-year terms; those elected will serve in the 112th Congress from January 3, 2011 until January 3, 2013.
Contents
- Overview
- District 1
- District 2
- Results
- District 3
- District 4
- District 5
- District 6
- District 7
- District 8
- District 9
- District 10
- District 11
- District 12
- District 13
- District 14
- District 15
- District 16
- District 17
- District 18
- District 19
- District 20
- District 21
- District 22
- District 23
- District 24
- Polling
- District 25
- District 26
- District 27
- District 28
- District 29
- Key
- References
The election marked the first time that New York used electronic voting as the state was the last to implement the process under the Help America Vote Act.
Republican candidates prevailed in a total of eight congressional races in New York, while Democratic candidates prevailed in the other 21; thus, the GOP gained a total of six House seats in New York. The closest race occurred in New York's First Congressional District, where Republican candidate Randy Altschuler did not concede to Democratic incumbent Congressman Tim Bishop until December 8.
As of December 8 the post-election makeup will be as follows:
Current tallies
Overview
The table below shows the total number and percentage of votes, as well as the number of seats gained and lost by each political party in the election for the United States House of Representatives in New York. In addition, the voter turnout and the number of votes not valid will be listed below.
District 1*
Democratic, Working Families and Independence incumbent Tim Bishop was challenged by Republican and Conservative Party nominee Randy Altschuler, a local businessman. It was the last undecided Congressional election in the country when Altschuler conceded on December 8, 2010.
In the Republican primary, Altschuler won against George Demos, an attorney and prosecutor who worked on Bernard Madoff's case. State Republican Party chairman Edward F. Cox was allegedly trying to dissuade primary challengers to his son Christopher Nixon Cox, grandson of former President Richard Nixon. Bishop had roughly $1 million cash on hand, while Altschuler had raised $800,000. A February 2010 SurveyUSA poll showed Bishop with a slight 47% to 45% lead over Altschuler.
On election night Bishop had a 3,500 vote lead. However within two days after it was reported the Dominion Voting Systems voting machines had been rechecked and Altschuler had a 400-vote lead. Following a partial recount of absentee ballots Bishop was reported with a 15-vote lead on November 19. Altschuler conceded the election on December 8, 2010; Bishop led by a 263-vote margin.
District 2
Democratic, Working Families and Independence Party incumbent Steve Israel ran for reelection, challenged by Republican and Conservative Party nominee John Gomez and Constitution Party nominee Anthony Tolda, a financial consultant.
Gomez, a good friend of author Mark Levin, is a favorite of the Tea Party movement. An attorney and former radio personality, he was encouraged to run by Sean Hannity, a childhood friend. An endorsement by former Speaker Newt Gingrich, Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, former NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani, and Sarah Palin followed.
Results
Steve Israel won the general election on November 2, 2010.
District 3
Republican, Conservative, Independence and Tax Revolt Party incumbent Peter T. King ran for reelection, challenged by Democratic nominee Howard Kudler. The district is located in Nassau County on Long Island and is considered a safe Republican district. King won reelection on November 2, 2010.
District 4
Democratic and Working Families incumbent Carolyn McCarthy was challenged by Republican, Conservative, Independence and Tax Revolt Party nominee Fran Becker (campaign site, PVS).
Becker is the first elected representative of the 6th Legislative District in the Nassau County Legislature. He is also the first elected official to challenge Carolyn McCarthy since Becker's brother, former Assemblyman Greg Becker, in 1998. The Becker brothers are the grandsons of Frank J. Becker who served the district in the U.S. House of Representatives in the 1950s and 1960s.
McCarthy won reelection on November 2, 2010.
District 5
Democratic, Working Families and Independence incumbent Gary Ackerman was challenged by Republican and Conservative Party nominee Dr. James Milano (campaign site, PVS) and Libertarian and Tax Revolt Party nominee Elizabeth Berney. The district, which stretches from eastern Queens across the Town of North Hempstead, is historically Democratic, and Ackerman won the general election on November 2, 2010.
However, Republicans picked up 2 city council seats in Eastern Queens and elected Republicans to the Nassau County Executive and Comptroller offices in 2009.
District 6
Democratic incumbent Gregory Meeks ran for reelection, challenged by Republican and Conservative Party nominee Asher Taub (campaign site, PVS). Meeks hasn't had a serious opponent since his first run in 1998 when he won with 56%. Although the district is located in heavily Democratic New York City, Taub was endorsed by a number of local newspapers. Meeks won the general election on November 2, 2010.
District 7
Democratic and Working Families incumbent Joe Crowley ran for reelection, challenged by Republican and Conservative Party nominee Ken Reynolds (campaign site, PVS), a community activist in New York City. Green Party nominee Anthony Gronowicz (campaign site, PVS) is also running.
Taub is a New York attorney, member of the NYPD Clergy Liaison program since its inception in 1995, and the son of a Hungarian Holocaust survivor. Taub also had the support of the Conservative Party. Crowley won the general election.
District 8
Democratic and Working Families incumbent Jerry Nadler ran for reelection, challenged by Republican and Conservative Party nominee Susan Kone, a New York attorney. The district covers parts of Brooklyn and Manhattan. Nadler won the general election on November 2, 2010.
District 9
Democratic, Working Families and Independence Party incumbent Anthony Weiner ran for reelection, challenged by Republican and Conservative Party nominee Bob Turner, a New York businessman. Turner faced a potential primary challenge from Joseph Hayon, founder of Homework Helper Institute LLC, and member of the Board of Advisers of the American Family Association-NY, but Hayon dropped his congressional campaign to run for the New York State Assembly from the 45th district. In the 2008 presidential election Barack Obama won 55% of the vote to John McCain's 45%. The district covers parts of Brooklyn and Queens in New York City. Weiner won the general election on November 2, 2010. After Anthony Weiner resigned due to a sexual scandal, Republican Bob Turner won the seat in September 2011. Turner was supported by former Democratic mayor Ed Koch, who wished to send Barack Obama a message over what he regarded as hostile foreign policy towards Israel.
District 10
Democratic incumbent Ed Towns ran for reelection, challenged by Republican nominee Diana Muñiz and Conservative Party nominee Ernest Johnson. In the Democratic primary, Towns won against Kevin Powell, an author, journalist and congressional candidate in 2008. The 10th district is wholly within the borough of Brooklyn. Towns won the general election on November 2, 2010.
District 11
Democratic and Working Families incumbent Yvette Clarke ran for reelection, challenged by Republican and Conservative Party nominee Hugh C. Carr. The 11th district is wholly within the borough of Brooklyn. Clarke won the general election on November 2, 2010.
District 12
Democratic and Working Families incumbent Nydia Velazquez ran for reelection, challenged by Conservative Party nominee Alice Gaffney. In the Democratic primary, Velazquez defeated Bruce Hirschfeld, a mortgage broker, and George Martinez, a US State Department Cultural Envoy and a former New York State Democratic Committeeman. Velazquez won the general election on November 2, 2010.
District 13*
Democratic and Independence incumbent Michael McMahon was challenged by Republican and Conservative Party nominee Michael Grimm, a former FBI Special Agent, and Libertarian nominee Tom Vendittelli. The 13th district covers the entire Staten Island and parts of south Brooklyn.
In the Republican primary, Grimm ran against the director of government relations for the Climate Group Michael Allegretti. Vito Fossella had earlier been rumored to be considering a comeback, but did not run. Allegretti had the support of the Republican County Committees of Kings and Richmond Counties. Grimm had the support of the Conservative Party's county committees. According to an April 2010 Global Strategy Group poll, McMahon led Grimm and Allegretti 56% to 23% and 56% to 24% respectively.
In 2008, Democratic nominee McMahon was elected with 61% of the vote. Following several controversies, six-term Republican incumbent Fossella decided to retire. Then the first Republican candidate died before the 2008 general election. The 13th district is one of a few districts across the United States which in 2008 voted for the Republican presidential candidate John McCain and elected a Democrat to the US House.
Michael Grimm won the general election, unseating McMahon, on November 2, 2010.
District 14
Democratic and Working Families incumbent Carolyn Maloney was challenged by Republican nominee David Ryan Brumberg, Conservative Party nominee Timothy J. Healy, and Independence Party nominee Dino L. LaVerghetta. Maloney considered running for Senate against Kirsten Gillibrand, but decided against it. In the Democratic primary she won against Reshma Saujani. Saujani was supported by Diana Taylor, companion to multi-billionaire New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg.
Maloney was heavily favored, but the Republicans have held legislative seats in this district as recently as 2002, and the Republican opposition is not token. Nonetheless, Maloney won the general election on November 2, 2010.
The district in on the Manhattan East Side and includes portions of Queens.
District 15
Democratic and Working Families incumbent Charles B. Rangel ran for reelection, challenged by Republican, Conservative and Jobs Now Party nominee Michel Faulkner, a Harlem pastor and former New York Jet, Independence and Vote People for Change Party nominee Craig Schley, and Socialist Worker nominee Roger Calero.
Rangel, who has served the Harlem-area district since 1971, faced a primary challenge from Adam Clayton Powell IV, Vincent Morgan and labor activist Jonathan Tasini.
Rangel won the general election on November 2, 2010.
District 16
Democratic and Working Families incumbent Jose Serrano ran for reelection, challenged by Republican and Conservative Party nominee Frank Della Valle. The district lies entirely within the Bronx. Serrano won the general election on November 2, 2010.
District 17
Democratic and Working Families incumbent Eliot Engel ran for reelection, challenged by Republican nominee Anthony Mele and Conservative Party nominee York Kleinhandler. The district encompasses parts of the Bronx, Westchester, and Rockland Counties.
Engel was born in the Bronx, the son of an ironworker. He grew up in a city housing project and attended New York City public schools. In 1977, while a teacher and guidance counselor in New York City public schools, Engel entered the special election for a seat in the New York State Assembly. In 1988, he was successful in a primary in 1988, ousting incumbent Mario Biaggi, who had been charged with racketeering in the Wedtech scandal. He was eventually prosecuted by Rudolph W. Giuliani and later jailed. Biaggi ran again and lost to Engel in 1992.
Engel won 79% of the vote in 2008, 76% in 2006 and 2004, and 62% in 2002 when he defeated Rockland County Executive C. Scott Vanderhoef. In 2000, he fought back the primary challenge of State Senator Larry Seabrook. Election experts predicted that Engel would post similar numbers in 2010. In March 2009, the AP reported that Engel was granted a legal annual tax credit on his Maryland residence. The Washington Post reported that the matter was reviewed by the Office of Congressional Ethics in August, 2009 and the OCE eventually ended its review on Engel, and Reps. Doris Matsui and Edolphus Towns, without recommending further investigation by the ethics committee.
Army veteran York Kleinhandler, has gained the GOP and Conservative Party endorsements from the party committees in the Bronx, Rockland County and Westchester County. Kleinhandler faces a Republican primary of his own against Tea Party candidate Anthony Mele in September, a primary that has brought local Republicans to physical blows and led to police involvement. He was also dogged by accusations "for predatory business practices against senior citizens" in Florida.
Engel won the general election on November 2, 2010.
District 18
Democratic, Working Families and Independence incumbent Nita Lowey was challenged unsuccessfully by Republican and Conservative Party nominee (and former Republican nominee) Jim Russell and write-in candidate Cortes DeRussy.
Lowey was first elected in 1988 (defeating Joseph J. DioGuardi) and had few challenges since. The Republicans have endorsed write-in candidate Cortes DeRussy. Venture capitalist Paul Wasserman, who would have run against her as a Republican, backed out in July 2010. Mark Rosen, seen by many as the strongest competition, was recalled up to military service just as his campaign was gaining traction and was forced to drop out of the race. Theologist James C. Russell holds the Republican and Conservative ballot lines by virtue of being the only person in the race in September, but the Republican Party disowned him after an essay in which he supported racial segregation surfaced; they currently have no way of getting him off the ballot. Lowey won the general election on November 2, 2010.
District 19*
Democratic and Working Families incumbent John Hall ran for reelection, challenged by Republican, Conservative and Independence nominee Nan Hayworth. Hayworth, who had Tea Party approval and support, won by 6 points. Hayworth is a GOP Young Gun. Although the district historically leans Republican, Hall had won the seat twice.
District 20*
Democratic, Working Families and Independence Party incumbent Scott Murphy was challenged by Republican and Conservative Party nominee Chris Gibson, a retired U.S. Army colonel.
Murphy won the 2009 special election for the seat which was called after Kirsten Gillibrand was appointed to the United States Senate in January to replace Hillary Clinton, who had resigned to become United States Secretary of State.
Gibson unseated Murphy on November 2, 2010.
District 21
Democratic, Working Families and Independence Party incumbent Paul Tonko ran for reelection, challenged by Republican Conservative Party nominee Ted Danz, a former United States Navy Reservist and small business owner in the cooling and heating business. The district lies in the Capital District of New York, including Albany, Schenectady, and Troy. Tonko won the general election on November 2, 2010.
District 22
Democratic incumbent Maurice Hinchey and Working Families and Independence Party candidate ran successfully for reelection, defeating Republican and Conservative Party challenger George Phillips.
District 23
Democratic and Working Families incumbent Bill Owens ran for reelection, challenged by Republican and Independence nominee Matt Doheny (campaign site, PVS). Conservative Party nominee Doug Hoffman, who lost to Doheny in a Republican primary, was also on the ballot, but he suspended his campaign on October 5, 2010.
Owens had won this seat in a 2009 special election by 48.7% to 46.5% (3024 votes) over Conservative Party of New York nominee Hoffman, after Republican Dierdre Scozzafava suspended her campaign and endorsed Owens less than three days before the election. Prominent Republicans, including former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, and former New York Governor George Pataki endorsed Hoffman instead of Scozzafava, who had been picked by Republican county chairs. While Barack Obama won a majority of the district's 2008 presidential votes, Democratic candidate Owens failed to secure a majority in the 2009 election. The district has rarely embraced Democratic Congressional candidates; Republicans had been elected continuously since the mid-19th century, and in three of the previous six Congressional elections the district's Conservative Party candidate received more votes than a Democratic Party candidate.
On November 2, 2010, Owens was re-elected to a full term over Doheny with a second plurality win, with Hoffman's vote tally exceeding Owens's margin of victory.
District 24*
Democratic incumbent Michael Arcuri lost in 2010 to Republican, Conservative and Independence Party nominee Richard L. Hanna, whom Arcuri had narrowly defeated in 2008.
The Libertarian Party of New York backed 25-year-old Ernest Logan Bell (campaign site, PVS) and headed a petition drive to get him onto the ballot.
Hanna won the general election, unseating Arcuri, on November 2, 2010.
Polling
†Internal poll for Arcuri campaign
District 25
Democratic and Working Families incumbent Dan Maffei ran for reelection, challenged by Republican, Conservative and Independence Party nominee Ann Marie Buerkle. On November 23, Maffei conceded to Buerkle after mounting pressure to disband his campaign. In the Republican primary, former Syracuse Common Councilor Ann Marie Buerkle won against farmer and government reform advocate Mark Bitz and local leader Paul Bertan. Former congressional candidate David Gay dropped out of the race earlier and endorsed Buerkle. The Libertarian Party backed Marc Romain.
In February, 2009, Greenberg Quinlan Rosner and Public Opinion Strategies National Public Radio classified the NY-25th as one of 60 "Most Competitive" Democratically held districts. Maffei was targeted by the NRCC for his vote in favor of the Recovery and Reinvestment Act and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
Cook listed the race as "Likely Democratic" and CQ as "Democrat Favored". The district leans Democratic (CPVI D+3).
Though the race was expected to favor Maffei, the "conservative revolution" defeated him, sending Buerkle to Washington.
District 26
Republican, Conservative and Independence Party incumbent Chris Lee ran for reelection, challenged by Democratic nominee Philip A. Fedele. Lee won the general election on November 2, 2010, only to resign three months later due to allegations of infidelity.
District 27
Democratic and Working Families incumbent Brian Higgins ran for reelection, challenged by Republican, Conservative and Taxpayers Party nominee Leonard Roberto, an Akron native and a leader in the local branch of the Tea Party movement.
Roberto declared his candidacy against Higgins on April 13, 2010. Although this is the same district formerly represented by Republican Jack Quinn, the district has a heavy Democratic voter enrollment advantage, and Higgins is generally popular in the district; as such, none of the major prognosticators consider this race to be competitive. The district includes Chautauqua County and a large portion of Erie County, including a portion of the city of Buffalo. Higgins won reelection on November 2, 2010.
District 28
Democratic, Working Families and Independence Party incumbent Louise Slaughter ran for reelection, challenged by Republican and Conservative Party nominee Jill A. Rowland.
Two candidates were put forth by competing factions of the Tea Party movement. Rowland, a dentist, was originally mentioned as a candidate for Higgins's seat, but was persuaded by a faction of the party led by Rus Thompson to run against Slaughter instead. The faction led by James Ostrowski supported Michael Giuliano, a 29-year-old legal publication editor and attorney allied with Ron Paul, but Giuliano dropped out of the race in July 2010.
Slaughter won against Eddie Egriu in the Democratic primary, and she is widely predicted to keep her seat without any serious competition. Fred Smerlas, a former Buffalo Bills defensive tackle who currently resides in Massachusetts, had expressed an interest in returning to Western New York to challenge her, but later stated that he would not do so this election cycle. Slaughter was criticized for supporting and helping pass the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, particularly her proposal (later abandoned) that would have allowed the Congress to "deem" the bill passed, and not have to vote on the bill itself. The district runs through much of the cities of Buffalo and Rochester and ends at Slaughter's house in Fairport. It is heavily Democratic (CPVI D+11) and Slaughter won the general election on November 2, 2010.
District 29*
District 29 was an "open" seat. The candidates on the ballot were Democratic and Working Families nominee Matthew Zeller and Republican, Conservative and Independence Party nominee Tom Reed. "Tea Party" candidate Janice Volk is running as a write-in candidate. Tom Reed defeated Matthew Zeller for both the special election to fill the open seat and for the term beginning on January 3, 2011. On November 15, one day before his formal swearing-in ceremony to fill the seat left vacant by Massa, in Washington, D.C., Reed was hospitalized with blood clots in his lungs and was scheduled to be sworn in on Thursday, November 18, 2010.
Democratic incumbent Eric J. Massa won this district by 1.8 percentage points in 2008 over then-two-term incumbent John "Randy" Kuhl. The district leans Republican (CPVI R+5), voted for John McCain over Barack Obama by a 51-48 margin, and, accounting for redistricting, had been held by a Republicans for almost a century, except for Democrat Stan Lundine's time representing the area in the 1970s and 1980s. Massa had an active campaign war chest of over $38,000, most of it from labor union interests, and intended on using the fund for a 2010 campaign. The NRCC had also targeted Massa for voting in favor of the Recovery and Reinvestment Act. However, on March 3, 2010, Massa announced that he would retire after his first term, following reports that he had suffered a recurrence of cancer and allegations of sexual harassment; Massa later announced his resignation effective March 8. Although Governor David Paterson planned on calling a special election for the same day as the general election, such a move does not appear to be legal under state law or the U.S. Constitution, and a pending lawsuit is attempting to force the governor into calling an election sooner.
Reed, the outgoing mayor of Corning, announced his candidacy in 2009 and is the Republican nominee. Monroe County executive Maggie Brooks, state senator Catharine Young and Kuhl himself publicly acknowledged they were considering the race, but all three backed Reed. Black conservative political activist Janice Volk filed petitions to challenge Reed in the Republican primary, but she fell less than 100 signatures short of making the ballot after her petitions were challenged by an apparent friend of the Reed campaign. She then sought help from James Ostrowski on a third-party challenge on a line that Ostrowski dubs the "Tea Party", but the movement failed to collect enough petition signatures to get onto the ballot. She insists she is still running as a write-in candidate in the general election, since there will be no primary, and continues to have Ostrowski's support. Angelo Campini also had proposed a write-in campaign but bowed out shortly before the primary would have been held, endorsing Reed.
The Democrats selected Zeller as their candidate in the event of a special election. Zeller, who was largely unknown until his selection, does not live in the state of New York, and claims to be a "native" of several towns ranging from Rochester to the Southern Tier. Zeller was an ROTC-trained Army officer who served in Afghanistan and holds master's degrees in international relations and public administration.
Prior to Massa's abrupt departure from his re-election bid, Rothenberg had rated the race as "Leans Democratic" (down from "Democrat Favored"), stating that it could be a "major problem" for Massa if the Republicans choose a "strong challenger". Both Cook and CQ listed the race as "Leans Democratic." Larry Sabato had rated the race as a toss-up. Shortly after the departure, Rothenberg and CQ shifted the race to a toss-up and Cook moved it into the "Lean Republican" category. Sabato remained unchanged. National Review, on the other hand, considers the race to be one of the easiest of the competitive races for a Republican takeover, on the order of "defeating the St. Louis Rams" (the worst team in the NFL in 2009).
Reed defeated Zeller in both the special and general elections, with Volk only drawing a minimal share of the vote.
It was the last election for the (numerically) 29th district; the United States Census Bureau announced it would be stripping New York of two Congressional seats based on the results of the 2010 United States Census. It could possibly be dissolved, or renumbered with another county from the east (Tioga County) attached to it while another district (almost certain to be upstate, with candidates being the current 20th, 23rd, 24th or one of the Buffalo districts) is broken up.
Key
*A district that has a partisan voting index of a party that is represented by the opposite party, and applies to an EVEN score