NEW YORK
— Veteran Democratic Reps. Charles Rangel and Carolyn Maloney handily beat back spirited primary challenges Tuesday while Republicans chose candidates to compete with several vulnerable New York House Democrats
.
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Under fire for a range of ethics allegations, Rangel was leading his closest rival, Assemblyman Adam Clayton Powell IV, by more than 2 to 1. Three other challengers were trailing badly.
A House panel has charged Rangel with 13 violations, including using official stationery to solicit funds for a college center in New York named for him and failing to disclose and pay taxes on rental income from a beach villa in the Dominican Republic. Rangel has vigorously fought the charges and pushed back on calls from some Democrats, including President Barack Obama, to step aside.
In remarks to supporters at his primary night rally, Rangel portrayed his win as a victory for the supporters who have faithfully stood by him. [See who is donating money to Rangel's campaign.]
"I'm going back to Washington with such pride," Rangel said to cheers before the results were announced but as early returns suggested he would win. "This isn't a win for Charlie Rangel. This is our community's win."
Maloney scored a decisive win in the 14th Congressional District, which covers Queens and the eastern side of Manhattan. While she faced down a well-funded challenge from hedge fund lawyer Reshma Saujani, Maloney ultimately pulled in about 80 percent of the primary vote. [See where Maloney's campaign cash comes from.]
Maloney had a simple answer when asked how she had won so easily.
"Hard work and a record to run on. Passing legislation that's important to people's lives," Maloney told The Associated Press in an interview.
Both Rangel and Maloney are virtually assured victory in November in their heavily Democratic districts.
On the Republican side, businessman Randy Altschuler prevailed in a three-way contest in eastern Long Island to face incumbent Democratic Rep. Tim Bishop in November. Chris Cox, the grandson of the late President Richard M. Nixon and son of state Republican Chairman Ed Cox, came in a distant third.
On Staten Island, former FBI agent Michael Grimm easily defeated businessman Michael Allegretti to take on first term Democratic Rep. Michael McMahon. McMahon is considered vulnerable in the most conservative of New York City's five boroughs.
In upstate New York, investment banker Matt Doheny defeated Doug Hoffman despite Hoffman's strong support among tea party supporters. Hoffman, who rose to fame last year when he challenged the hand-picked GOP candidate in a special election to replace Republican Rep. John McHugh, may do the same again this time. He has vowed to stay on as the nominee of the Conservative Party, setting up a three way race that could help Democratic Rep. Bill Owens win re-election.
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Thursday, September 16, 2010
Paladino Beats Lazio in New York GOP Race for Governor
NEW YORK — Tea party activist Carl Paladino wasted no time in setting his sights on Democrat Andrew Cuomo after confounding pundits and rolling over the leaders of New York's Republican and Conservative parties with a stunning win in the GOP primary for governor.
Click here to find out more!
"Andrew Cuomo has to answer to the people," Paladino said Tuesday after defeating Republican Party designee Rick Lazio, a former congressman. Cuomo "is going to have to debate me. I'll debate him 49 days if there are 49 days between now and then."
"He was never vetted. He came in on Spitzer's coattails," Paladino said, referring to former Gov. Eliot Spitzer, who resigned in disgrace following a prostitution scandal after he led the 2006 Democratic ticket that included Cuomo as the attorney general
nominee.
Paladino says he will succeed in fixing Albany's corruption and dysfunction because he's not a professional politician.
"They brought with them a desire to keep holding office. This is the first and last time I'm going to run for elected office," he said, repeating his promise to serve one four-year term.
Cuomo, the one-term attorney general who also was a private-sector lawyer, secretary of housing in the Clinton administration and an aide to his father, former Gov. Mario Cuomo, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
"I'm against career politicians because they've put the state in the disarray that it's in right now," said Rod Tobin, 64, a Buffalo Republican. "If people have run a business before or know how to manage an operation, I think they're better to handle things than the politicians today are running it."
With 89 percent of precincts reporting, Paladino had 63 percent of the vote to Lazio's 37 percent.
Paladino, a millionaire Buffalo developer, rode a wave of voter anger on his way to delivering another blow to the GOP in a heavily Democratic state.
There was a deafening cheer in his Buffalo headquarters when it was announced that The Associated Press had called the race for Paladino, 64, who promises to "take a baseball bat" to dysfunctional government in Albany.
"If we've learned anything tonight, it's that New Yorkers are mad as hell, and we're not going to take it anymore!" Paladino said. "The people have spoken."
He then welcomed Republicans who opposed him to join "the peoples' crusade ... New Yorkers are fed up. Tonight the ruling class has seen it now ... there is a peoples' revolution."
After speaking for about 15 minutes, Paladino led the crowd in an a capella version of "God Bless America."
Democratic Gov. David Paterson defended Cuomo, saying others tried to "take a baseball bat" to Albany "but ended up with a broken bat." He said Cuomo would work hard and is not "one who sits on a lead or think he's annointed."
Lazio wouldn't say if he would abandon a Conservative run for governor on the line he won Tuesday night. But such an effort hasn't been mounted for decades.
"We came up short and that is a disappointment," Lazio said in Manhattan. He said he embraces Paladino's platform of fiscal reform and that he wants to "be part of that effort ... and this campaign continues in terms of the ideas and the spirit."
Paladino overcame early criticism and ridicule over sexist and racist e-mail jokes he once forwarded to friends and his description of the Democratic Assembly leader as being like an anti-Christ. Some of his promised programs also were critically received, such as renovating prisons to provide jobs and "life lessons" including personal hygiene habits to welfare recipients, an idea he patterns after the New Deal's Civilian Conservation Corps.
State Republican Chairman Ed Cox, who had backed two candidates before embracing Paladino, called Paladino a tough competitor who would make a good governor.
Lazio, 52, hadn't conceded and was awaiting returns from all of Long Island, his base when he was a congressman. He was trounced upstate, where in his 2000 race for U.S. Senate against Hillary Rodham Clinton he made the mistake of saying the region's economy had "turned the corner."
NEW YORK — Tea party activist Carl Paladino wasted no time in setting his sights on Democrat Andrew Cuomo after confounding pundits and rolling over the leaders of New York's Republican and Conservative parties with a stunning win in the GOP primary for governor.
Click here to find out more!
"Andrew Cuomo has to answer to the people," Paladino said Tuesday after defeating Republican Party designee Rick Lazio, a former congressman. Cuomo "is going to have to debate me. I'll debate him 49 days if there are 49 days between now and then."
"He was never vetted. He came in on Spitzer's coattails," Paladino said, referring to former Gov. Eliot Spitzer, who resigned in disgrace following a prostitution scandal after he led the 2006 Democratic ticket that included Cuomo as the attorney general
nominee.
Paladino says he will succeed in fixing Albany's corruption and dysfunction because he's not a professional politician.
"They brought with them a desire to keep holding office. This is the first and last time I'm going to run for elected office," he said, repeating his promise to serve one four-year term.
Cuomo, the one-term attorney general who also was a private-sector lawyer, secretary of housing in the Clinton administration and an aide to his father, former Gov. Mario Cuomo, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
"I'm against career politicians because they've put the state in the disarray that it's in right now," said Rod Tobin, 64, a Buffalo Republican. "If people have run a business before or know how to manage an operation, I think they're better to handle things than the politicians today are running it."
With 89 percent of precincts reporting, Paladino had 63 percent of the vote to Lazio's 37 percent.
Paladino, a millionaire Buffalo developer, rode a wave of voter anger on his way to delivering another blow to the GOP in a heavily Democratic state.
There was a deafening cheer in his Buffalo headquarters when it was announced that The Associated Press had called the race for Paladino, 64, who promises to "take a baseball bat" to dysfunctional government in Albany.
"If we've learned anything tonight, it's that New Yorkers are mad as hell, and we're not going to take it anymore!" Paladino said. "The people have spoken."
He then welcomed Republicans who opposed him to join "the peoples' crusade ... New Yorkers are fed up. Tonight the ruling class has seen it now ... there is a peoples' revolution."
After speaking for about 15 minutes, Paladino led the crowd in an a capella version of "God Bless America."
Democratic Gov. David Paterson defended Cuomo, saying others tried to "take a baseball bat" to Albany "but ended up with a broken bat." He said Cuomo would work hard and is not "one who sits on a lead or think he's annointed."
Lazio wouldn't say if he would abandon a Conservative run for governor on the line he won Tuesday night. But such an effort hasn't been mounted for decades.
"We came up short and that is a disappointment," Lazio said in Manhattan. He said he embraces Paladino's platform of fiscal reform and that he wants to "be part of that effort ... and this campaign continues in terms of the ideas and the spirit."
Paladino overcame early criticism and ridicule over sexist and racist e-mail jokes he once forwarded to friends and his description of the Democratic Assembly leader as being like an anti-Christ. Some of his promised programs also were critically received, such as renovating prisons to provide jobs and "life lessons" including personal hygiene habits to welfare recipients, an idea he patterns after the New Deal's Civilian Conservation Corps.
State Republican Chairman Ed Cox, who had backed two candidates before embracing Paladino, called Paladino a tough competitor who would make a good governor.
Lazio, 52, hadn't conceded and was awaiting returns from all of Long Island, his base when he was a congressman. He was trounced upstate, where in his 2000 race for U.S. Senate against Hillary Rodham Clinton he made the mistake of saying the region's economy had "turned the corner."
Paladino lost to Lazio at the state GOP convention but then petitioned his way to the primary by securing 30,000 Republican signatures statewide.
"I don't know if he wins if he'd beat Cuomo, but I hope he does," said Kenneth Bray, a 54-year-old woodworker from Buffalo. Bray's goal: "Getting rid of the bums in Albany."
Paladino, 64, does little to follow traditional politics, bucking party bosses along the way. He has courted tea party activists angry over high taxes and the major political parties.
Cuomo has a better than 2-to-1 edge in the polls over Paladino and more than $23 million in his campaign account. Paladino has promised to spend up to $10 million in the whole campaign, but has spent just a fraction of that so far in his underdog effort.
In an unusual turn, Lazio's running mate for lieutenant governor, Chautauqua County Executive Greg Edwards, defeated Paladino's choice of Tom Ognibene of Queens. That gives the Republican a narrow geographic flavor, with both candidates from western New York.
US News
Click here to find out more!
"Andrew Cuomo has to answer to the people," Paladino said Tuesday after defeating Republican Party designee Rick Lazio, a former congressman. Cuomo "is going to have to debate me. I'll debate him 49 days if there are 49 days between now and then."
"He was never vetted. He came in on Spitzer's coattails," Paladino said, referring to former Gov. Eliot Spitzer, who resigned in disgrace following a prostitution scandal after he led the 2006 Democratic ticket that included Cuomo as the attorney general
nominee.
Paladino says he will succeed in fixing Albany's corruption and dysfunction because he's not a professional politician.
"They brought with them a desire to keep holding office. This is the first and last time I'm going to run for elected office," he said, repeating his promise to serve one four-year term.
Cuomo, the one-term attorney general who also was a private-sector lawyer, secretary of housing in the Clinton administration and an aide to his father, former Gov. Mario Cuomo, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
"I'm against career politicians because they've put the state in the disarray that it's in right now," said Rod Tobin, 64, a Buffalo Republican. "If people have run a business before or know how to manage an operation, I think they're better to handle things than the politicians today are running it."
With 89 percent of precincts reporting, Paladino had 63 percent of the vote to Lazio's 37 percent.
Paladino, a millionaire Buffalo developer, rode a wave of voter anger on his way to delivering another blow to the GOP in a heavily Democratic state.
There was a deafening cheer in his Buffalo headquarters when it was announced that The Associated Press had called the race for Paladino, 64, who promises to "take a baseball bat" to dysfunctional government in Albany.
"If we've learned anything tonight, it's that New Yorkers are mad as hell, and we're not going to take it anymore!" Paladino said. "The people have spoken."
He then welcomed Republicans who opposed him to join "the peoples' crusade ... New Yorkers are fed up. Tonight the ruling class has seen it now ... there is a peoples' revolution."
After speaking for about 15 minutes, Paladino led the crowd in an a capella version of "God Bless America."
Democratic Gov. David Paterson defended Cuomo, saying others tried to "take a baseball bat" to Albany "but ended up with a broken bat." He said Cuomo would work hard and is not "one who sits on a lead or think he's annointed."
Lazio wouldn't say if he would abandon a Conservative run for governor on the line he won Tuesday night. But such an effort hasn't been mounted for decades.
"We came up short and that is a disappointment," Lazio said in Manhattan. He said he embraces Paladino's platform of fiscal reform and that he wants to "be part of that effort ... and this campaign continues in terms of the ideas and the spirit."
Paladino overcame early criticism and ridicule over sexist and racist e-mail jokes he once forwarded to friends and his description of the Democratic Assembly leader as being like an anti-Christ. Some of his promised programs also were critically received, such as renovating prisons to provide jobs and "life lessons" including personal hygiene habits to welfare recipients, an idea he patterns after the New Deal's Civilian Conservation Corps.
State Republican Chairman Ed Cox, who had backed two candidates before embracing Paladino, called Paladino a tough competitor who would make a good governor.
Lazio, 52, hadn't conceded and was awaiting returns from all of Long Island, his base when he was a congressman. He was trounced upstate, where in his 2000 race for U.S. Senate against Hillary Rodham Clinton he made the mistake of saying the region's economy had "turned the corner."
NEW YORK — Tea party activist Carl Paladino wasted no time in setting his sights on Democrat Andrew Cuomo after confounding pundits and rolling over the leaders of New York's Republican and Conservative parties with a stunning win in the GOP primary for governor.
Click here to find out more!
"Andrew Cuomo has to answer to the people," Paladino said Tuesday after defeating Republican Party designee Rick Lazio, a former congressman. Cuomo "is going to have to debate me. I'll debate him 49 days if there are 49 days between now and then."
"He was never vetted. He came in on Spitzer's coattails," Paladino said, referring to former Gov. Eliot Spitzer, who resigned in disgrace following a prostitution scandal after he led the 2006 Democratic ticket that included Cuomo as the attorney general
nominee.
Paladino says he will succeed in fixing Albany's corruption and dysfunction because he's not a professional politician.
"They brought with them a desire to keep holding office. This is the first and last time I'm going to run for elected office," he said, repeating his promise to serve one four-year term.
Cuomo, the one-term attorney general who also was a private-sector lawyer, secretary of housing in the Clinton administration and an aide to his father, former Gov. Mario Cuomo, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
"I'm against career politicians because they've put the state in the disarray that it's in right now," said Rod Tobin, 64, a Buffalo Republican. "If people have run a business before or know how to manage an operation, I think they're better to handle things than the politicians today are running it."
With 89 percent of precincts reporting, Paladino had 63 percent of the vote to Lazio's 37 percent.
Paladino, a millionaire Buffalo developer, rode a wave of voter anger on his way to delivering another blow to the GOP in a heavily Democratic state.
There was a deafening cheer in his Buffalo headquarters when it was announced that The Associated Press had called the race for Paladino, 64, who promises to "take a baseball bat" to dysfunctional government in Albany.
"If we've learned anything tonight, it's that New Yorkers are mad as hell, and we're not going to take it anymore!" Paladino said. "The people have spoken."
He then welcomed Republicans who opposed him to join "the peoples' crusade ... New Yorkers are fed up. Tonight the ruling class has seen it now ... there is a peoples' revolution."
After speaking for about 15 minutes, Paladino led the crowd in an a capella version of "God Bless America."
Democratic Gov. David Paterson defended Cuomo, saying others tried to "take a baseball bat" to Albany "but ended up with a broken bat." He said Cuomo would work hard and is not "one who sits on a lead or think he's annointed."
Lazio wouldn't say if he would abandon a Conservative run for governor on the line he won Tuesday night. But such an effort hasn't been mounted for decades.
"We came up short and that is a disappointment," Lazio said in Manhattan. He said he embraces Paladino's platform of fiscal reform and that he wants to "be part of that effort ... and this campaign continues in terms of the ideas and the spirit."
Paladino overcame early criticism and ridicule over sexist and racist e-mail jokes he once forwarded to friends and his description of the Democratic Assembly leader as being like an anti-Christ. Some of his promised programs also were critically received, such as renovating prisons to provide jobs and "life lessons" including personal hygiene habits to welfare recipients, an idea he patterns after the New Deal's Civilian Conservation Corps.
State Republican Chairman Ed Cox, who had backed two candidates before embracing Paladino, called Paladino a tough competitor who would make a good governor.
Lazio, 52, hadn't conceded and was awaiting returns from all of Long Island, his base when he was a congressman. He was trounced upstate, where in his 2000 race for U.S. Senate against Hillary Rodham Clinton he made the mistake of saying the region's economy had "turned the corner."
Paladino lost to Lazio at the state GOP convention but then petitioned his way to the primary by securing 30,000 Republican signatures statewide.
"I don't know if he wins if he'd beat Cuomo, but I hope he does," said Kenneth Bray, a 54-year-old woodworker from Buffalo. Bray's goal: "Getting rid of the bums in Albany."
Paladino, 64, does little to follow traditional politics, bucking party bosses along the way. He has courted tea party activists angry over high taxes and the major political parties.
Cuomo has a better than 2-to-1 edge in the polls over Paladino and more than $23 million in his campaign account. Paladino has promised to spend up to $10 million in the whole campaign, but has spent just a fraction of that so far in his underdog effort.
In an unusual turn, Lazio's running mate for lieutenant governor, Chautauqua County Executive Greg Edwards, defeated Paladino's choice of Tom Ognibene of Queens. That gives the Republican a narrow geographic flavor, with both candidates from western New York.
US News
Kerry In Line to Replace Clinton at State?
Word on Capitol Hill is that Sen. John Kerry, the 2004 Democratic presidential nominee with a well-worn passport to the world's hot spots, is in the mix to replace Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who's been hinting of an exit before the end of President Obama's first term. Kerry, as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has acted as an emissary for Obama. Should he leave, Wisconsin Sen. Russ Feingold, in a bitter reelection fight, would be in line to chair the committee. If he loses, it might fall to New Jersey Sen. Robert Menendez, whose goal is the fall of Cuba's Castro regime, a policy Obama doesn't seem to back.
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Lamontagne, Ayotte GOP Senate Race Too Close to Call
CONCORD, N.H. — The seven-way Republican U.S. Senate primary came down to conservative attorney Ovide Lamontagne and former Attorney General Kelly Ayotte, with the race too close to call early Wednesday.
Click here to find out more!
Lamontagne spokesman Jim Merrill said at about 2 a.m. that Lamontagne was calling it a night, but Ayotte campaign manager Brooks Kochvar said she was still watching results and was encouraged.
Ayotte held a slight lead — close enough for Lamontagne to legally request a recount if the margin held — with 85 percent of precincts reporting. Ayotte had 46,331 votes, or 38 percent, while Lamontagne had 45,352, or 37 percent.
Multimillionaire businessman Bill Binnie, who spent more than $5 million out of his own pocket pushing his jobs agenda, received 16,960 votes, or 14 percent, and conceded along with millionaire businessman Jim Bender, who got 10,507 votes, or 9 percent.
That left the two more conservative candidates to count votes into the next morning. Three others also were in the race but did not challenge for the nomination.
Lamontagne, who painted himself as the only true conservative in the race, held a slight advantage in early returns over Ayotte — former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's pick for the seat. But as the night wore on, Ayotte took a slight lead.
The winner hopes to win retiring GOP Sen. Judd Gregg's seat and face Democratic nominee Paul Hodes, who was unopposed.
Hodes said Tuesday night the Republican agenda is "extreme, radical and right wing." He said Republicans would take the country backward into the hole from which the nation is struggling to dig out.
"I'm running for the people of New Hampshire. I don't have to run against anyone," Hodes said.
Ayotte, 42, of Nashua, won the blessing from Palin, who calls her a "Granite Grizzly." Ayotte spent more than $2 million on her anti-Democrat, anti-federal spending campaign.
Lamontagne closed fast in the final days of the race despite spending only $400,000. Lamontagne, 52, counted on conservative groups, not money, to win the nomination.
"It's not how much money you have, it's the message," Lamontagne said Tuesday night.
In a fight over who is the most conservative, Ayotte won Palin's endorsement in July over Lamontagne, who courted tea party activists. Palin, the former vice presidential nominee, recorded telephone messages to voters that started Sunday praising Ayotte as "the true conservative" — a mantle Lamontagne had tried to claim as his throughout his campaign.
Lamontagne's two previous election bids were unsuccessful. His late surge was similar to his victory over former U.S. Rep. Bill Zeliff for the 1996 GOP gubernatorial nomination, but Democratic U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen beat him to capture the first of her three two-year terms as governor. Lamontagne failed in a GOP primary bid in 1992 to unseat Zeliff in the 1st District.
Brad Marshall, a 67-year-old Republican who owns Marshall Firearms in Boscawen, said he voted for Lamontagne because he remembers when he was chairman of the state Board of Education.
"I talked to him on a number of occasions. I knew what he was all about," he said.
Jim Richardson, 61, who owns a farm in Boscawen, said he went with his conscience in voting for Lamontagne.
"I think he's a stronger conservative than any of them," he said.
Ayotte supporters cited familiarity with her from her time as attorney general.
"I feel like Kelly's not a politician," said Kate Benway, 31, of Concord, who said she trusted her.
Binnie, 52, of Rye, put his fortune behind his effort to be the voters' choice as most experienced in creating jobs. He spent more than $6 million — more than $5 million out of his own pocket. As his support appeared to ebb late in the race, Binnie reached out to social moderates by trumpeting his support for abortion rights in a losing effort.
Bender, 57, of Hollis, added to the spending spree with nearly $1 million, most of it his money.
All four had pledged to cut spending, pare the deficit, cut taxes, secure the U.S.-Mexico border and repeal health care reforms they say amount to a government takeover.
The Republicans spent more than $9.5 million for the chance to face Hodes, 59, of Concord. Despite being unopposed, Hodes spent $2.5 million to line up support to try to win the seat. The spending totals will rise after final primary campaign finance reports are filed with the Federal Elections Commission. [See who is donating money to Hodes' campaign.]
Chris Cornog, 55, of Canterbury, who owns a small marketing communications firm, said he voted for Hodes because he thinks "he's really smart." Cornog said he also believes Hodes will help push President Barack Obama's agenda, which he supports.
Regardless of party, candidates have focused on voters' worries about the economy and their jobs with their messages. But Republicans are pinning their hopes in November on voters' willingness to blame Democrats for the nation's ills.
Democrats are trying to distance themselves from Washington by painting themselves as independent New Hampshire thinkers. Hodes, for example, advertises he bucked his party by voting against the Wall Street bailout.
US News
Click here to find out more!
Lamontagne spokesman Jim Merrill said at about 2 a.m. that Lamontagne was calling it a night, but Ayotte campaign manager Brooks Kochvar said she was still watching results and was encouraged.
Ayotte held a slight lead — close enough for Lamontagne to legally request a recount if the margin held — with 85 percent of precincts reporting. Ayotte had 46,331 votes, or 38 percent, while Lamontagne had 45,352, or 37 percent.
Multimillionaire businessman Bill Binnie, who spent more than $5 million out of his own pocket pushing his jobs agenda, received 16,960 votes, or 14 percent, and conceded along with millionaire businessman Jim Bender, who got 10,507 votes, or 9 percent.
That left the two more conservative candidates to count votes into the next morning. Three others also were in the race but did not challenge for the nomination.
Lamontagne, who painted himself as the only true conservative in the race, held a slight advantage in early returns over Ayotte — former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's pick for the seat. But as the night wore on, Ayotte took a slight lead.
The winner hopes to win retiring GOP Sen. Judd Gregg's seat and face Democratic nominee Paul Hodes, who was unopposed.
Hodes said Tuesday night the Republican agenda is "extreme, radical and right wing." He said Republicans would take the country backward into the hole from which the nation is struggling to dig out.
"I'm running for the people of New Hampshire. I don't have to run against anyone," Hodes said.
Ayotte, 42, of Nashua, won the blessing from Palin, who calls her a "Granite Grizzly." Ayotte spent more than $2 million on her anti-Democrat, anti-federal spending campaign.
Lamontagne closed fast in the final days of the race despite spending only $400,000. Lamontagne, 52, counted on conservative groups, not money, to win the nomination.
"It's not how much money you have, it's the message," Lamontagne said Tuesday night.
In a fight over who is the most conservative, Ayotte won Palin's endorsement in July over Lamontagne, who courted tea party activists. Palin, the former vice presidential nominee, recorded telephone messages to voters that started Sunday praising Ayotte as "the true conservative" — a mantle Lamontagne had tried to claim as his throughout his campaign.
Lamontagne's two previous election bids were unsuccessful. His late surge was similar to his victory over former U.S. Rep. Bill Zeliff for the 1996 GOP gubernatorial nomination, but Democratic U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen beat him to capture the first of her three two-year terms as governor. Lamontagne failed in a GOP primary bid in 1992 to unseat Zeliff in the 1st District.
Brad Marshall, a 67-year-old Republican who owns Marshall Firearms in Boscawen, said he voted for Lamontagne because he remembers when he was chairman of the state Board of Education.
"I talked to him on a number of occasions. I knew what he was all about," he said.
Jim Richardson, 61, who owns a farm in Boscawen, said he went with his conscience in voting for Lamontagne.
"I think he's a stronger conservative than any of them," he said.
Ayotte supporters cited familiarity with her from her time as attorney general.
"I feel like Kelly's not a politician," said Kate Benway, 31, of Concord, who said she trusted her.
Binnie, 52, of Rye, put his fortune behind his effort to be the voters' choice as most experienced in creating jobs. He spent more than $6 million — more than $5 million out of his own pocket. As his support appeared to ebb late in the race, Binnie reached out to social moderates by trumpeting his support for abortion rights in a losing effort.
Bender, 57, of Hollis, added to the spending spree with nearly $1 million, most of it his money.
All four had pledged to cut spending, pare the deficit, cut taxes, secure the U.S.-Mexico border and repeal health care reforms they say amount to a government takeover.
The Republicans spent more than $9.5 million for the chance to face Hodes, 59, of Concord. Despite being unopposed, Hodes spent $2.5 million to line up support to try to win the seat. The spending totals will rise after final primary campaign finance reports are filed with the Federal Elections Commission. [See who is donating money to Hodes' campaign.]
Chris Cornog, 55, of Canterbury, who owns a small marketing communications firm, said he voted for Hodes because he thinks "he's really smart." Cornog said he also believes Hodes will help push President Barack Obama's agenda, which he supports.
Regardless of party, candidates have focused on voters' worries about the economy and their jobs with their messages. But Republicans are pinning their hopes in November on voters' willingness to blame Democrats for the nation's ills.
Democrats are trying to distance themselves from Washington by painting themselves as independent New Hampshire thinkers. Hodes, for example, advertises he bucked his party by voting against the Wall Street bailout.
US News
O'Donnell's Tea Party Win Stuns Delaware GOP, Thrills Democrats
WILMINGTON, Del.—The state Republican Party's fierce attacks on tea party-backed Christine O'Donnell offer Democrats plenty of ammunition in the U.S. Senate race after her shocking upset of a nine-term congressman and former governor.
Click here to find out more!
Democrats watched for weeks as U.S. Rep. Mike Castle and O'Donnell pummeled each other in an ugly contest that didn't let up even in the final hours Tuesday when her own party launched automated phone calls attacking her.
A woman who said she was Kristin Murray, O'Donnell's campaign manager in her 2008 unsuccessful Senate campaign, accusing the candidate of "living on campaign donations — using them for rent and personal expenses, while leaving her workers unpaid and piling up thousands in debt." That followed earlier GOP claims that O'Donnell has lied about her education and has left a trail of unpaid bills that included tax liens and a default on her mortgage.
Democrats and their candidate Chris Coons can simply reach into the GOP's quiver for arrows to fire at O'Donnell as they try to hold onto the seat held for more than three decades by Joe Biden before he gave it up in early 2009 after being elected vice president. His successor, Democratic Sen. Ted Kaufman, pledged not to run for a full term.
[Read more about the 2010 elections.]
The results had barely been counted before the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee began cataloging the nasty comments fellow Republicans have said about O'Donnell.
"Even the Delaware Republican Party chairman has said O'Donnell is 'not a viable candidate for any office in the state of Delaware,' and 'could not be elected dogcatcher,'" DSCC chairman Sen. Robert Menendez said in a statement.
The GOP criticism and a huge Democratic advantage in state voter registration numbers make O'Donnell's prospects of defeating county executive Coons in November even more daunting.
"Every leading Delaware Republican knows that Christine O'Donnell is way out of the mainstream," said Coons, who was unopposed for the Democratic nomination.
Before Tuesday, Castle, a former two-term governor who is the longest serving U.S. House member in state history, had never lost an election. O'Donnell's side went on the attack, portraying him as a Republican in name only who was too liberal and often voted with Democrats in Congress.
O'Donnell came in as a two-time loser, in 2008 to Biden for Senate, and earlier in a three-way GOP primary for that seat.
And though her boost by Tea Party Express spending on television and radio ads won her the primary, Republican support statewide and nationally is doubtful.
[See a roundup of editorial cartoons about the Tea Party.]
Castle did not mention her name in his concession speech and said earlier that supporting O'Donnell if she won would be difficult.
"One of the basic arguments here is that she is just not going to win the general election," Castle said. "I totally believe that ... I see no way she could win this general election, or maybe any general election."
Making matters worse, national Republican Party officials said as the votes were being counted that the party would not come to her aid if she won, citing a string of disclosures about her personal finances and other matters, including her attacks on Castle.
Still, O'Donnell was riding a winning high during her acceptance speech.
"Some people have already said we can't win the general election," O'Donnell said in a speech to supporters, who responded with chants of, "Yes, we can!" that turned to, "Yes, we will!"
"If those people who fought so hard against me work just as hard for me, then we can win," O'Donnell added in an apparent reference to Republicans who opposed her.
O'Donnell also faces a numbers battle. She garnered less than 30,000 votes in a contest in which only Republicans could cast ballots. About 293,000 Democrats are registered in Delaware, compared with about 183,000 Republicans.
Her supporters remained undaunted.
"If she can beat Castle, she can beat Coons," said Judy Mangini, 50, a real estate agent from Lewes who worked on O'Donnell's campaign.
GOP support for O'Donnell is doubtful not only because of questions about her appeal to the general electorate and her finances, but because of the harsh words leveled at Castle during the primary.
Besides casting him as a liberal, O'Donnell, 41, and her supporters suggested that the 71-year-old Castle is so frail that he might die before finishing his Senate term, that he might switch parties and become a Democrat, and that he was cheating on his wife with a man.
"This has not been at all pleasant, this particular campaign," Castle said.
US News
Click here to find out more!
Democrats watched for weeks as U.S. Rep. Mike Castle and O'Donnell pummeled each other in an ugly contest that didn't let up even in the final hours Tuesday when her own party launched automated phone calls attacking her.
A woman who said she was Kristin Murray, O'Donnell's campaign manager in her 2008 unsuccessful Senate campaign, accusing the candidate of "living on campaign donations — using them for rent and personal expenses, while leaving her workers unpaid and piling up thousands in debt." That followed earlier GOP claims that O'Donnell has lied about her education and has left a trail of unpaid bills that included tax liens and a default on her mortgage.
Democrats and their candidate Chris Coons can simply reach into the GOP's quiver for arrows to fire at O'Donnell as they try to hold onto the seat held for more than three decades by Joe Biden before he gave it up in early 2009 after being elected vice president. His successor, Democratic Sen. Ted Kaufman, pledged not to run for a full term.
[Read more about the 2010 elections.]
The results had barely been counted before the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee began cataloging the nasty comments fellow Republicans have said about O'Donnell.
"Even the Delaware Republican Party chairman has said O'Donnell is 'not a viable candidate for any office in the state of Delaware,' and 'could not be elected dogcatcher,'" DSCC chairman Sen. Robert Menendez said in a statement.
The GOP criticism and a huge Democratic advantage in state voter registration numbers make O'Donnell's prospects of defeating county executive Coons in November even more daunting.
"Every leading Delaware Republican knows that Christine O'Donnell is way out of the mainstream," said Coons, who was unopposed for the Democratic nomination.
Before Tuesday, Castle, a former two-term governor who is the longest serving U.S. House member in state history, had never lost an election. O'Donnell's side went on the attack, portraying him as a Republican in name only who was too liberal and often voted with Democrats in Congress.
O'Donnell came in as a two-time loser, in 2008 to Biden for Senate, and earlier in a three-way GOP primary for that seat.
And though her boost by Tea Party Express spending on television and radio ads won her the primary, Republican support statewide and nationally is doubtful.
[See a roundup of editorial cartoons about the Tea Party.]
Castle did not mention her name in his concession speech and said earlier that supporting O'Donnell if she won would be difficult.
"One of the basic arguments here is that she is just not going to win the general election," Castle said. "I totally believe that ... I see no way she could win this general election, or maybe any general election."
Making matters worse, national Republican Party officials said as the votes were being counted that the party would not come to her aid if she won, citing a string of disclosures about her personal finances and other matters, including her attacks on Castle.
Still, O'Donnell was riding a winning high during her acceptance speech.
"Some people have already said we can't win the general election," O'Donnell said in a speech to supporters, who responded with chants of, "Yes, we can!" that turned to, "Yes, we will!"
"If those people who fought so hard against me work just as hard for me, then we can win," O'Donnell added in an apparent reference to Republicans who opposed her.
O'Donnell also faces a numbers battle. She garnered less than 30,000 votes in a contest in which only Republicans could cast ballots. About 293,000 Democrats are registered in Delaware, compared with about 183,000 Republicans.
Her supporters remained undaunted.
"If she can beat Castle, she can beat Coons," said Judy Mangini, 50, a real estate agent from Lewes who worked on O'Donnell's campaign.
GOP support for O'Donnell is doubtful not only because of questions about her appeal to the general electorate and her finances, but because of the harsh words leveled at Castle during the primary.
Besides casting him as a liberal, O'Donnell, 41, and her supporters suggested that the 71-year-old Castle is so frail that he might die before finishing his Senate term, that he might switch parties and become a Democrat, and that he was cheating on his wife with a man.
"This has not been at all pleasant, this particular campaign," Castle said.
US News
Tea Party-Backed O'Donnell Wins Upset Over Castle in Delaware
WILMINGTON, Del. — Conservative activist and tea party favorite Christine O'Donnell upset veteran U.S. Rep. Michael Castle in the Delaware Republican Senate primary Tuesday, overcoming hostile opposition from her state party to earn the surprising victory.
Click here to find out more!
In other unofficial results, Sussex County developer Glen Urquhart, who also courted the tea party vote, had a 552-vote lead over Greenville businesswoman Michele Rollins, who, like Castle, was the party's endorsed candidate.
O'Donnell's shocking win gave new energy to the tea party movement, which targeted Castle after victories by Republican tea party candidates in the Alaska and Nevada Senate primaries.
[See a roundup of editorial cartoons about the Tea Party.]
With all precincts reporting, O'Donnell had 53 percent to 47 percent for Castle, a former two-term governor and the longest serving congressman in Delaware history.
"The voters in the Republican primary have spoken, and I respect that decision," Castle told supporters who stood in stunned silence as election returns rolled in, then erupted in an enthusiastic ovation when he took the stage for a brief speech.
"I had a very nice speech prepared, hoping I would win this race," Castle said jokingly, as tearful staffers and supporters looked on.
Castle did not mention O'Donnell in his speech, and he left the room without taking questions from reporters.
O'Donnell supporters who gathered at an Elks Lodge in Dover erupted in cheers and dancing upon learning of her victory. O'Donnell took the lead early as voting results came in and never relinquished it, prompting some of her supporters to make floor-sweeping motions while cheering, "Sweep 'em out!"
"We're obviously thrilled," said Tea Party Express chairwoman Amy Kremer, whose California-based group committed $250,000 for radio and television ads on O'Donnell's behalf. "We got behind her because we believe in her."
"We're listening to the pulse of America," Kremer added. "We know Americans are fed up with party politics."
[Read more about the 2010 election.]
While attracting enough GOP conservatives to defeat Castle, a leader of Republican moderates in Congress, O'Donnell will have a hard time defeating Democrat Chris Coons in November for the Senate seat vacated by Joe Biden after he was elected vice president.
But voters nevertheless took their chances on O'Donnell, who characterized Castle as a liberal who sides with big-spending Democrats more than he does with fellow Republicans.
"I think Castle is too liberal," said Robert Manning, 56, a design engineer from Georgetown who voted for O'Donnell.
"I think Washington has done enough damage with all this stimulus spending over the past 18 or 19 months," Manning added. "It's time to get back within our budget."
O'Donnell, who hasn't had a steady job in years but has instead made an avocation of running for Senate, finally won after two failed Senate bids. She came in last in a three-way GOP primary in 2006 and lost badly to Biden in 2008, when she won the endorsement of state GOP convention delegates but received virtually no help from the party.
But the Tea Party Express bolstered O'Donnell's long-shot bid this year by pledging $250,000 to run television and radio ads on her behalf.
O'Donnell and her staunchly conservative supporters characterized Castle as a liberal who often votes with Democrats in Congress while masquerading as a GOP conservative. In their words, Castle is a "RINO," a "Republican in Name Only."
They also suggested that Castle, 71, was so frail that he might die before finishing his Senate term, that he might switch parties, and that he was cheating on his wife with a man.
While ignoring O'Donnell for much of the campaign, Castle and state Republican Party eventually fired back with attack ads of their own, criticizing O'Donnell, 41, for lying about her education and record, leaving a trail of unpaid bills that included unsettled campaign debts, tax liens and a default on her mortgage, and using campaign finances for personal expenses. The GOP also filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission accusing O'Donnell of illegally colluding with tea party supporters.
Associated Press Writer Sarah Brumfield in Dover contributed to this report.
US News
Click here to find out more!
In other unofficial results, Sussex County developer Glen Urquhart, who also courted the tea party vote, had a 552-vote lead over Greenville businesswoman Michele Rollins, who, like Castle, was the party's endorsed candidate.
O'Donnell's shocking win gave new energy to the tea party movement, which targeted Castle after victories by Republican tea party candidates in the Alaska and Nevada Senate primaries.
[See a roundup of editorial cartoons about the Tea Party.]
With all precincts reporting, O'Donnell had 53 percent to 47 percent for Castle, a former two-term governor and the longest serving congressman in Delaware history.
"The voters in the Republican primary have spoken, and I respect that decision," Castle told supporters who stood in stunned silence as election returns rolled in, then erupted in an enthusiastic ovation when he took the stage for a brief speech.
"I had a very nice speech prepared, hoping I would win this race," Castle said jokingly, as tearful staffers and supporters looked on.
Castle did not mention O'Donnell in his speech, and he left the room without taking questions from reporters.
O'Donnell supporters who gathered at an Elks Lodge in Dover erupted in cheers and dancing upon learning of her victory. O'Donnell took the lead early as voting results came in and never relinquished it, prompting some of her supporters to make floor-sweeping motions while cheering, "Sweep 'em out!"
"We're obviously thrilled," said Tea Party Express chairwoman Amy Kremer, whose California-based group committed $250,000 for radio and television ads on O'Donnell's behalf. "We got behind her because we believe in her."
"We're listening to the pulse of America," Kremer added. "We know Americans are fed up with party politics."
[Read more about the 2010 election.]
While attracting enough GOP conservatives to defeat Castle, a leader of Republican moderates in Congress, O'Donnell will have a hard time defeating Democrat Chris Coons in November for the Senate seat vacated by Joe Biden after he was elected vice president.
But voters nevertheless took their chances on O'Donnell, who characterized Castle as a liberal who sides with big-spending Democrats more than he does with fellow Republicans.
"I think Castle is too liberal," said Robert Manning, 56, a design engineer from Georgetown who voted for O'Donnell.
"I think Washington has done enough damage with all this stimulus spending over the past 18 or 19 months," Manning added. "It's time to get back within our budget."
O'Donnell, who hasn't had a steady job in years but has instead made an avocation of running for Senate, finally won after two failed Senate bids. She came in last in a three-way GOP primary in 2006 and lost badly to Biden in 2008, when she won the endorsement of state GOP convention delegates but received virtually no help from the party.
But the Tea Party Express bolstered O'Donnell's long-shot bid this year by pledging $250,000 to run television and radio ads on her behalf.
O'Donnell and her staunchly conservative supporters characterized Castle as a liberal who often votes with Democrats in Congress while masquerading as a GOP conservative. In their words, Castle is a "RINO," a "Republican in Name Only."
They also suggested that Castle, 71, was so frail that he might die before finishing his Senate term, that he might switch parties, and that he was cheating on his wife with a man.
While ignoring O'Donnell for much of the campaign, Castle and state Republican Party eventually fired back with attack ads of their own, criticizing O'Donnell, 41, for lying about her education and record, leaving a trail of unpaid bills that included unsettled campaign debts, tax liens and a default on her mortgage, and using campaign finances for personal expenses. The GOP also filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission accusing O'Donnell of illegally colluding with tea party supporters.
Associated Press Writer Sarah Brumfield in Dover contributed to this report.
US News
State Fair Cravings: Walleye-On-Stick, Beer-on-a-Stick, Pork Sandwiches, and Other Favorites
Of all the annual events in every state, there's only one that attracts electioneering politicians and demands that they gorge on the most notable hot treat: State Fairs. With the State Fair season about half over, Whispers asked some notable Washingtonians and politicians for their favorite State Fair chow.
Some, like Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown and Indiana Sen. Richard Lugar said that they stick with the standards, while others like Minnesota Sen. Al Franken went with the local exotic treat. Below are a sampling of the favorite fare at state fairs.
"I love a stuffed baked potato loaded with toppings," says Brown. "The Big E fair in Springfield, Massachusetts, has the best."
South Dakota Sen. John Thune sticks with pork sandwiches, not a bad choice considering he'll probably be eating a lot more if he does what most expect and tosses his hat into the 2012 GOP presidential caucus in pork-rich Iowa.
Minnesota's Franken has several favorites at the Minnesota State Fair including Walleye-on-a-stick, roasted corn.
CNN's John King has a bunch of favorites he's had at the many state fairs he's covered in his journalism career. But one stands out: Beer-on-a-stick, which is essentially a wooden paddle that holds three cups of beer. "I had beer-on-a-stick at the Minnesota State Fair last year. Can't beat that. The deep fried Reese's was surprisingly good, too, and they have amazing chocolate chip cookies there. Sen. Amy Klobuchar tried to sell me on the chocolate dipped bacon, but I passed."
New York Sen. Chuck Schumer likes to nosh on a local favorite, maple-flavored cotton candy.
Indiana's Lugar goes for the tried and true Indiana State Fair pork tenderloin.
Ray LaHood, the Transportation secretary and former Illinois congressman, likes the state fair lemonade shakeup.
Tennesee Sen. Lamar Alexander's favorite booth serves up sliced Grainger County tomatoes on a country ham biscuit.
US News
Some, like Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown and Indiana Sen. Richard Lugar said that they stick with the standards, while others like Minnesota Sen. Al Franken went with the local exotic treat. Below are a sampling of the favorite fare at state fairs.
"I love a stuffed baked potato loaded with toppings," says Brown. "The Big E fair in Springfield, Massachusetts, has the best."
South Dakota Sen. John Thune sticks with pork sandwiches, not a bad choice considering he'll probably be eating a lot more if he does what most expect and tosses his hat into the 2012 GOP presidential caucus in pork-rich Iowa.
Minnesota's Franken has several favorites at the Minnesota State Fair including Walleye-on-a-stick, roasted corn.
CNN's John King has a bunch of favorites he's had at the many state fairs he's covered in his journalism career. But one stands out: Beer-on-a-stick, which is essentially a wooden paddle that holds three cups of beer. "I had beer-on-a-stick at the Minnesota State Fair last year. Can't beat that. The deep fried Reese's was surprisingly good, too, and they have amazing chocolate chip cookies there. Sen. Amy Klobuchar tried to sell me on the chocolate dipped bacon, but I passed."
New York Sen. Chuck Schumer likes to nosh on a local favorite, maple-flavored cotton candy.
Indiana's Lugar goes for the tried and true Indiana State Fair pork tenderloin.
Ray LaHood, the Transportation secretary and former Illinois congressman, likes the state fair lemonade shakeup.
Tennesee Sen. Lamar Alexander's favorite booth serves up sliced Grainger County tomatoes on a country ham biscuit.
US News
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