By Paul Shapiro
McCarthy defeated Mineola Mayor Jack Martins, and Weisenberg emerged victorious over Republican challenger Michael McGinty of Island Park. In his state Senate race, Skelos, who has held the 9th District seat since 1984, handily defeated Democrat Roy Simon, but his status as a member of the majority party in the Senate was still up in the air as of late Tuesday night.
In the 9th Senate District, Skelos defeated Simon, receiving 76,868 votes to Simon’s 41,6226. During Skelos’s tenure as the Senate's majority leader, he has used his influence in Albany to "bring home the bacon" by delivering state grants that support a variety of community organizations throughout the district. This much-needed aid could come to an end if the Democrats take over the Senate.
In the 20th Assembly District, Weisenberg received nearly 66 percent of the vote, with 31,568 votes to McGinty’s 16,148.
McCarthy easily won a seventh term in the House of Representatives, receivingjust over 60 percent of the vote with 80 percent of precincts reporting late Tuesday night. “I think people in the district know me very well,” she said. “They see me in their community constantly and they know I care very much about them. Being a member of Congress is really an extension of me being a nurse, and I'll continue to certainly serve the district and fight for them.”
McCarthy said she hopes the economy can turn around in the next two years. “The economy has to be the number one issue that we have to face,” she said. “We've got to get that back up. It's going to be painful, but I do believe we can do it.”
McCarthy said that given the state of the economy, she plans to focus on jobs, health care and education, which starts from the top with the new president. “We need to get the economy going,” she said. “That's the number one priority.”
Comments on this story? PShapiro@liherald.com or (516) 569-400, ext. 201.
