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Kaminsky sworn into State Senate

Officially defeats Republican McGrath by 886 votes

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State Assemblyman Todd Kaminsky was officially declared the winner of last month’s special election for the 9th Senate District seat on Monday, with an 886-vote margin over Republican candidate Chris McGrath.

Kaminsky was sworn in on Tuesday by State Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins. As Long Island’s newest senator, he will effectively break up the so-called “Long Island 9,” the Republican Long Island delegation that controlled the Senate for decades.

Kaminsky, 38, a former federal prosecutor, ran on a platform focused on rooting out corruption in Albany, and vowed to push legislation aimed at ethics reforms. The swearing-in ceremony in Albany took place, ironically, on the same day that former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver was sentenced to 12 years in prison on corruption charges.

“I am honored by the confidence my community has placed in me, and I will work day and night to restore honor and trust to our state government,” Kaminsky said in a statement. “Today I pledge to continue my fight in the State Senate to ban outside income, close the LLC loophole, reform our campaign finance system and end pay-to-play politics.”

The Nassau County Board of Elections certified the election on Monday after counting just over 3,200 absentee ballots, according to Democratic board of elections Commissioner Dave Gugerty. “The board worked in true bipartisan fashion to professionally and expeditiously confirm the results of this important election,” Gugerty said.

Republican Commissioner Louis Savinetti did not return a call seeking comment.

The race to replace former Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos, who was convicted of corruption charges in December, took on an ugly tone in the weeks leading up to the April 19 election. Kaminsky, 38, narrowly defeated McGrath, 57, an attorney from Hewlett Harbor, by just 780 votes on Election Night, and declared victory at the Park Sports Bar & Grill in Long Beach, saying he would fight for ethics reforms in Albany. But McGrath said the race was too close to call and, as the Herald went to press on Wednesday, had yet to concede. A spokesman for McGrath did not return a call requesting comment.

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