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Colleen Deacon Wins Dem. Primary In The 24th Congressional District

Eric Kingson, Colleen Deacon, Steve Williams (L-R)
WRVO.org
Eric Kingson, Colleen Deacon, Steve Williams (L-R)

  

ALBANY, N.Y. (AP & WXXI News) — There were some Congressional Primaries in New York State on Tuesday, and the one closest to the Finger Lakes was a Democratic primary for the 24th Congressional district. That Syracuse-centered district includes all of Wayne County, and Colleen Deacon won a three-way Democratic primary and will face Republican first-termer Rep. John Katko in the fall. The 24th District also includes Onondaga, Cayuga and the western part of Oswego County.

Deacon, a former aide to Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, had lined up support from high-profile Democrats, including her former boss. She was born and raised in Syracuse. Katko defeated a Democrat two years ago in a traditionally competitive district.

In the lower Hudson Valley, Phil Oliva won in a Republican primary and will take on Democratic incumbent Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney in the fall.

A hard-fought Democratic primary on the eastern end of Long Island between former Southampton town supervisor Anna Throne-Holst and venture capitalist David Calone was too close to call Tuesday night. The winner will take on Republican first-term Rep. Lee Zeldin in November.

A nine-way Democratic primary race in retiring Rep. Charles Rangel's New York City district was too close to call Tuesday night.

State Sen. Adriano Espaillat held a lead over Assemblyman Keith Wright with 99 percent of the precincts reporting, Espaillat led by more than 1,200 votes. Espaillat had failed to knock off Rangel twice before in Democratic primaries.

Wright had the backing of Rangel in a district that has remained a stronghold for black politicians for generations even as the number of Latinos grew.

Rangel won his congressional seat in 1970 by defeating Adam Clayton Powell Jr. in a Democratic primary.

"This campaign ain't over. Every vote is going to be counted," Keith Wright told his supporters Tuesday night. "We worked too long and too hard."

Espaillat sounded a similar theme: "We will count every single vote, and we are confident that by the end of the fight we will be up by over 1,000 votes."

Meanwhile, Rep. Jerrold Nadler won the Democratic primary for a New York City congressional seat he's held for nearly a quarter-century.

Nadler's win came after a contentious primary battle — the first time he's faced a challenge in a Democratic primary in two decades — centering on his support for President Barack Obama's Iran nuclear deal. Nadler was the only Jewish Democratic House member from the city to endorse the deal.

His opponent, Oliver Rosenberg, said he thought voters felt betrayed by Nadler's support of the measure. The former investment banker also accused Nadler of being out of touch with younger voters.

New York City Democrats Gregory Meeks, Nydia Velazquez, Carolyn Maloney and Jose Serrano also fended off primary challenges.

Rangel and Rep. Steve Israel of Long Island are among the four New York congressmen retiring at the end of the year, guaranteeing new faces in the 27-member delegation. Primary contests also were being held in the districts of the two outgoing upstate Republicans: Hudson Valley Rep. Chris Gibson and central New York Rep. Richard Hanna.

Democrat Zephyr Teachout and Republican John Faso will battle for Gibson's seat this fall after winning their primary races.

Teachout, who defeated Will Yandik, became a progressive hero in 2014 by challenging Gov. Andrew Cuomo from the left and grabbing about a third of the primary vote. The Fordham University law professor moved into the district after that race.

Faso is a former state Assemblyman who lost a race for governor in 2006 against Democrat Eliot Spitzer. He defeated first-time candidate Andrew Heaney in the Republican primary.

The district stretches west from the Hudson Valley and is closely split between Democrats and Republicans. Gibson is retiring after three terms.

On Long Island, former Nassau County executive Thomas Suozzi won a five-way Democratic primary race in Israel's district. Suozzi will face Republican Jack Martins in what could be a competitive general election campaign.

Suozzi lost re-election to his county post in 2009. He also ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2006, losing to Eliot Spitzer.

Assemblywoman Claudia Tenney won a three-way Republican primary in the central New York district represented by Hanna.

Tenney's conservative supporters included Carl Paladino, the 2010 Republican candidate for governor and a prominent backer of Donald Trump. She had unsuccessfully challenged Hanna in a GOP primary two years ago.

The Democrat in the race is Kim Myers, a Broome County legislator whose father started Dick's Sporting Goods.

Randy Gorbman is WXXI's director of news and public affairs. Randy manages the day-to-day operations of WXXI News on radio, television, and online.