Republican Saratoga County Clerk Kathy Marchione was successful in her bid to represent the New York State Senate’s new 43rd District.
Marchione was flanked by supporters as she took to the podium at the Holiday Inn in Saratoga Springs at around 11 p.m. Tuesday night to accept her election to the New York State Senate.
Unofficial results show her winning with 47 percent of the vote over the 35 percent won by Democratic Claverack Town Supervisor Robin Andrews.
Marchione told those assembled the story of what she described as an unlikely path to victory…
In September, Marchione defeated incumbent Senator Roy McDonald in an extremely tight Republican primary that hinged in large part on the incumbent’s break with the party last year voting in support marriage equality. McDonald suspended his campaign following the loss but still appeared on the ballot on the Independence Party line.
A pre-election Siena Research Institute poll showed McDonald with the support of 29 percent of poll participants; unofficial results show him winning only 16 percent of the vote.
On stage Marchione thanked both of her opponents for having the “courage” to run for office.
When asked after her speech about the intense primary battle, she said sometimes that type of contest comes with the territory…
She added that she had run a “strong, issue based” campaign, and highlighted some of the issues she says will top her list when she arrives in Albany…
Just before speaking to reporters, one nearby Marchione supporter gave a blunt analysis of the race as a referendum on the candidates’ views on same sex marriage.
Here Marchione responds to the question of what message she wanted to convey to her gay constituents…
Roy McDonald served as Saratoga County supervisor for the town of Wilton for 23 years before his first election to statewide office representing the former 100th Assembly District in 2002. His office did not return calls for comment in time for this broadcast.