New York State Senate elections, 2016

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2016 New York Senate Elections
Primary	September 13, 2016
General	November 8, 2016

All 63 seats in the New York State Senate were up for election in 2016.

A Ballotpedia analysis identified the New York State Senate as one of 20 battleground chambers in the November 2016 election. These are the chambers where one party might have, realistically, toppled the other party from its position of majority control.

This election was one of Ballotpedia's top 10 state-level races in 2016.
Click here to read the full list.

Introduction[edit]

Elections for the New York State Senate took place in 2016. The primary election took place on September 13, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The filing deadline for major party candidates was July 14, 2016. The filing deadline for independent candidates was August 23, 2016.

Majority control[edit]

See also: Partisan composition of state senates

Heading into the election, the New York State Senate was controlled by Republicans through a power-sharing agreement. Simcha Felder (D) was a part of the Republican Conference. Jeffrey Klein, David Valesky, David Carlucci, Diane Savino, and Tony Avella were a part of the Independent Democratic Conference, tipping the balance further towards the GOP.

Republicans continued to maintain control of the chamber after the election through the same power-sharing agreement with Felder and the Independent Democratic Conference.^[2]

Retired incumbents[edit]

Five incumbent senators did not seek re-election in 2016. Those incumbents were:

Name	Party	Current Office
Jack Martins	Republican	Senate District 7
Adriano Espaillat	Democratic	Senate District 31
Hugh Farley	Republican	Senate District 49
Michael Nozzolio	Republican	Senate District 54
Marc C. Panepinto	Democratic	Senate District 60

Note: District 36 was vacant, and was previously represented by Ruth Hassell-Thompson (D).

Context of the 2016 elections[edit]

See also: State legislative battleground chambers, 2016

Before the Republican Party regained control of the state Senate in 2014, the party had held the majority off and on for over four decades. The Democratic Party gained the majority in 2008 but lost it in 2010. While Democrats held the numerical advantage after the 2012 election, a coalition of the Independent Democratic Conference (IDC) and the Republicans helped give Republicans control.^[3] Since Senate Democrats won a special election in District 9 on April 19, 2016, Democrats held a one-seat advantage over Republicans, but the power-sharing agreement between the IDC and Senate Republicans kept the chamber in Republican control.

The New York State Senate was identified by the Republican Legislative Campaign Committee (RLCC) as a defensive target for 2016.^[4] The Republican State Leadership Committee (RSLC) and Republican Legislative Campaign Committee (RLCC) planned to spend $40 million on legislative races for the 2015-2016 election cycle.

The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC) named Senate District 6 and Senate District 7 in their "2016 Essential Races."^[5][6]

Of the 25 state Senate seats deemed competitive by Ballotpedia, 24 were effectively controlled by the Republican Party. One of those seats belonged to David Carlucci, a Republican-leaning member of the Independent Democratic Conference. Twenty of those districts were won by Barack Obama in 2012. These competitive races, coupled with the idea that a Clinton win in the state would also bring legislative seats, gave possibility that control of the New York State Senate could have shifted into the Democrats' favor.

An article published on the political research website FiveThirtyEight.com speculated that the presidential election would affect state legislative races. Seth Masket, the author of this article, noted that, historically, there is a measurable "trickle-down" affect from presidential elections. A victory or loss on the presidential ticket tends to translate to comparable gains or losses in the legislative branch. Clinton's victory in New York likely helped Senate Democrats.^[7]

Long Island was considered to be one of the key battlegrounds in the state Senate since its nine-member delegation was made up of eight Republicans.^[8] One of the campaign strategies for Long Island Democratic candidates was to tie Nassau County's Republican Senate candidates to Donald Trump (R). Senate Majority Leader John Flanagan (R) endorsed Trump for president. Flanagan said, "I’m going to make this unequivocally clear. I’m supporting Donald Trump for president. I’m going to do so with grace, with diplomacy, with passion and with fervor and I’m going to do it with New York style."^[9] A Siena poll from September 2016 found that, "62% of voters statewide — including 56% in the suburbs — believed that Trump would hurt, not help, the GOP effort to maintain its Senate majority. The same poll showed 67% of suburban voters held an unfavorable view of Trump and just 32% in the suburbs were prepared to vote for him in November."^[10] Senate GOP spokesman Scott Reif believed that Democrats had a "complete and absolute fixation on Donald Trump" to hide their failures of when they controlled the Senate in 2009 and 2010. Reif said, "When you are wrong on all of the issues that Long Island taxpayers and their families care about — and the Senate Democrats are thoroughly and utterly wrong — you look for anything else to put in front of voters."^[10]

Races we watched[edit]

Ballotpedia identified six notable New York state legislative races in 2016, all six of which were state Senate contests.

Click here to read more about Ballotpedia's coverage of notable New York races »

General election contests[edit]

State Senate District 6

A Democratic candidate challenged the Republican incumbent to a rematch.

☑ Kemp Hannon (Inc.)      ☐ Ryan E. Cronin

State Senate District 7

A Democratic candidate and a Republican candidate competed for the open seat vacated by a Republican incumbent.

☐ Adam Haber      ☑ Elaine Phillips

State Senate District 9

A Republican candidate and Green Party candidate challenged the newly elected Democratic incumbent to a rematch.

☑ Todd Kaminsky (Inc.)      ☐ Christopher McGrath      ☐ Laurence Hirsh

State Senate District 40

A Democratic candidate and Working Families candidate challenged the freshman Republican incumbent.

☑ Terrence Murphy (Inc.)      ☐ Alison Boak      ☐ Andrew Falk

State Senate District 41

A Democratic candidate challenged the Republican incumbent to a rematch.

☑ Sue Serino (Inc.)      ☐ Terry Gipson

State Senate District 60

A Democrat, a Republican, and a Green Party candidate competed for the open seat vacated by a Democratic incumbent.

☐ Amber Small      ☑ Christopher Jacobs      ☐ James DePasquale

List of candidates[edit]

District 1[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Greg Fischer a

Republican primary candidates:

• Kenneth LaValle (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Greg Fischer: 47,813

Kenneth LaValle: 94,756 (I) a

District 2[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Peter N. Magistrale a

Republican primary candidates:

• John J. Flanagan (I) a

Conservative and Independence

Libertarian candidate:

• Stephen Ruth

November 8 General election candidates:

Peter N. Magistrale: 47,623

John J. Flanagan: 91,172 (I) a

Stephen Ruth: 5,505

District 3[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• John De Vito Jr.: 1,390 a

Working Families

• Joseph L. Fritz: 1,012

Women's Equality

• Ricardo Montano: 898

Republican primary candidates:

• Tom Croci (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

John De Vito Jr.: 46,108

Tom Croci: 65,713 (I) a

Joseph L. Fritz: 1,363 (Women's Equality)

District 4[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• John Alberts a

Republican primary candidates:

• Philip Boyle (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

John Alberts: 45,232

Philip Boyle: 76,411 (I) a

District 5[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• James Gaughran a

Working Families and Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• Carl Marcellino (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

James Gaughran: 72,265

Carl Marcellino: 74,024 (I) a

District 6[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Ryan E. Cronin a

Working Families and Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• Kemp Hannon (I) a

Conservative, Independence, Reform, and TRP-Tax Revolt

November 8 General election candidates:

Ryan E. Cronin: 60,938

Kemp Hannon: 71,174 (I) a

District 7[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Adam Haber a

Working Families and Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• Elaine Phillips a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Adam Haber: 66,029

Elaine Phillips: 69,438 a

District 8[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• John E. Brooks a

Working Families and Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• Michael Venditto (I) a

Conservative, Independence, TRP-Tax Revolt, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

John E. Brooks: 68,599 a

Michael Venditto: 68,285 (I)

District 9[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Todd Kaminsky (I) a

Working Families and Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• Christopher McGrath a

Conservative, Independence, Reform, and TRP-Tax Revolt

Green primary candidates:

• Laurence Hirsh a

November 8 General election candidates:

Todd Kaminsky: 75,245 (I) a

Christopher McGrath: 68,823

Laurence Hirsh: 1,459

District 10[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• James Sanders, Jr.: 5,495 (I) a

Working Families

• Adrienne E. Adams: 3,988

Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

November 8 General election candidates:

James Sanders, Jr.: 84,582 (I) a

Adrienne E. Adams: 3,054 (Women's Equality)

District 11[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Tony Avella (I) a

Republican primary candidates:

• Mark Cipolla a

Conservative and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Tony Avella: 72,520 (I) a

Mark Cipolla: 31,797

District 12[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Michael Gianaris (I) a

Working Families

Republican primary candidates:

• Marvin R. Jeffcoat a

Conservative

November 8 General election candidates:

Michael Gianaris: 82,328 (I) a

Marvin R. Jeffcoat: 13,409

District 13[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Jose Peralta: (I) a

Working Families

Republican primary candidates:

• Jesus Gonzalez a

Conservative and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Jose Peralta: 59,896 (I) a

Jesus Gonzalez: 9,162

District 14[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Leroy Comrie (I) a

Working Families

Republican primary candidates:

• Jarret N. Freeman a

November 8 General election candidates:

Leroy Comrie: 97,578 (I) a

Jarret N. Freeman: 8,364

District 15[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Joseph Addabbo (I) a

Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• Michael Conigliaro a

Conservative and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Joseph Addabbo: 62,460 (I) a

Michael Conigliaro: 35,691

District 16[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Toby Ann Stavisky: 5,690 (I) a

Working Families and Women's Equality

• S.J. Jung: 3,966

Republican primary candidates:

• Carlos G. Giron a

Conservative and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Toby Ann Stavisky: 52,495 (I) a

Carlos G. Giron: 14,856

District 17[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Simcha Felder (I) a

Republican and Conservative

Republican primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

November 8 General election candidates:

Simcha Felder (I) a

District 18[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Debbie Medina: 3,988
• Martin Malave Dilan: 5,844 (I) a

Independence

Republican primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

November 8 General election candidates:

Martin Malave Dilan (I) a

District 19[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Mercedes Narcisse: 3,284
• Roxanne Persaud: 10,358 (I) a

Working Families

Republican primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

November 8 General election candidates:

Roxanne Persaud (I) a

District 20[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Jesse Hamilton (I) a

Working Families and Independence

Republican primary candidates:

• Menachem Raitport a

Conservative

November 8 General election candidates:

Jesse Hamilton: 90,272 (I) a

Menachem Raitport: 5,706

District 21[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Kevin Parker (I) a

Working Families

Republican primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

Conservative primary candidates:

• Brian Kelly a

November 8 General election candidates:

Kevin Parker: 109,682 (I) a

Brian Kelly: 4,256

District 22[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

Republican primary candidates:

• Martin Golden (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Martin Golden (I) a

District 23[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Diane Savino (I) a

Independence

Republican primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

November 8 General election candidates:

Diane Savino (I) a

District 24[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

Republican primary candidates:

• Andrew Lanza (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Andrew Lanza (I) a

District 25[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Michael Cox: 4,719

Independence

• Velmanette Montgomery: 10,579 (I) a

Working Families

Republican primary candidates:

• Mamie Rose a

November 8 General election candidates:

Velmanette Montgomery: 114,943 (I) a

Mamie Rose: 3,896

Michael Cox: 4,247

District 26[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Daniel Squadron (I) a

Working Families

Republican primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

November 8 General election candidates:

Daniel Squadron (I) a

District 27[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Brad M. Hoylman (I) a

Working Families

Republican primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

RPP-Roberts candidate:

• Stephen Roberts

November 8 General election candidates:

Brad M. Hoylman: 118,371 (I) a

Stephen Roberts: 5,317

District 28[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Liz Krueger (I) a

Working Families

Independence primary:

• Mike Zumbluskas a

Republican, Women's Equality, and Libertarian

November 8 General election candidates:

Liz Krueger: 101,117 (I) a

Mike Zumbluskas: 33,788

District 29[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Jose M. Serrano (I) a

Republican primary candidates:

• Jose A. Colon a

Conservative primary candidates:

• Linda Ortiz a

November 8 General election candidates:

Jose M. Serrano: 56,194 (I) a

Jose A. Colon: 6,158

Linda Ortiz: 1,752

District 30[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Bill Perkins (I) a

Working Families

Republican primary candidates:

• Jon Girodes a

November 8 General election candidates:

Bill Perkins: 113,144 (I) a

Jon Girodes: 5,619

District 31[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Robert Jackson: 7,936
• Marisol Alcantara: 8,469 a
• Micah Lasher: 8,175
• Luis Tejada: 1,316

Republican primary candidates:

• Melinda Crump a

Conservative primary candidates:

• John Toro a

Green primary candidates:

• Julia Willebrand a

November 8 General election candidates:

Marisol Alcantara: 97,964 a

Melinda Crump: 8,719

John Toro: 1,368

Julia Willebrand: 6,400

District 32[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Ruben Diaz: 8,557 (I) a
• Elliot Quinones: 1,069

Republican primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

Conservative primary candidates:

• Oswald Denis a

November 8 General election candidates:

Ruben Diaz: 79,574 (I) a

Oswald Denis: 2,292

District 33[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• J. Gustavo Rivera: 6,036 (I) a

Working Families

• Fernando Cabrera: 3,549

Republican primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

Conservative primary candidates:

• Steven Stern a

November 8 General election candidates:

J. Gustavo Rivera: 61,953 (I) a

Steven Stern: 1,340

District 34[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Jeffrey Klein (I) a

Independence and Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

Conservative primary candidates:

• Aleksander Mici a

Green primary candidates:

• Carl Lundgren a

November 8 General election candidates:

Jeffrey Klein: 80,998 (I) a

Aleksander Mici: 6,080

Carl Lundgren: 2,686

District 35[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Andrea Stewart-Cousins (I) a

Working Families, Independence, and Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

November 8 General election candidates:

Andrea Stewart-Cousins (I) a

District 36[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Edward Mulraine: 2,503
• Jamaal Bailey: 8,629 a

Working Families

• Alvin Ponder: 932
• Pamela Hamilton-Johnson: 2,270
• Que English: 1,175

Republican primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

Conservative primary candidates:

• Robert Diamond a

November 8 General election candidates:

Jamaal Bailey: 88,233 a

Robert Diamond: 2,456

District 37[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• George Latimer (I) a

Working Families and Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• Julia P. Killian a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

George Latimer: 73,116 (I) a

Julia P. Killian: 58,164

District 38[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• David Carlucci (I) a

Independence and Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• Thomas F. DePrisco a

Conservative and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

David Carlucci: 77,317 (I) a

Thomas F. DePrisco: 41,612

District 39[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Christopher W. Eachus a

Working Families and Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• William Larkin (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Christopher W. Eachus: 52,986

William Larkin: 59,428 (I) a

District 40[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Alison Boak: 4,344 a

Working Families

• Andrew I. Falk: 1,179

Republican primary candidates:

• Terrence P. Murphy (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Alison Boak: 58,737

Terrence P. Murphy: 80,312 (I) a

District 41[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Terry W. Gipson a

Working Families, Women's Equality and Green

Republican primary candidates:

• Susan J. Serino (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Terry W. Gipson: 58,616

Susan J. Serino: 72,942 (I) a

District 42[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Opportunity to ballot ^[11]

Republican primary candidates:

• John Bonacic (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Pramilla Malick: 43,209

John Bonacic: 68,047 (I) a

District 43[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Shaun P. Francis a

Working Families

Republican primary candidates:

• Kathleen A. Marchione (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

Green primary candidates:

• Joseph Levy a

November 8 General election candidates:

Shaun P. Francis: 50,660

Kathleen A. Marchione: 85,057 (I) a

Joseph Levy: 3,330

District 44[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Neil Breslin (I) a

Working Families and Independence

Republican primary candidates:

• Christopher Davis a

Conservative and Reform

Green primary candidates:

• Deyva Arthur a

November 8 General election candidates:

Neil Breslin: 77,809 (I) a

Christopher Davis: 33,094

Deyva Arthur: 2,498

District 45[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

Republican primary candidates:

• Betty Little (I) a

Conservative and Independence

Green primary candidates:

• Stephen Matthew Ruzbacki a

November 8 General election candidates:

Betty Little: 92,717 (I) a

Stephen Matthew Ruzbacki: 12,553

District 46[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Sara K. Niccoli a

Working Families and Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• George Amedore (I) a

Conservative, Green, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Sara K. Niccoli: 48,986

George Amedore: 83,970 (I) a

District 47[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

Republican primary candidates:

• Joseph Griffo (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Joseph Griffo (I) a

District 48[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

Republican primary candidates:

• Patricia Ritchie (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Patricia Ritchie (I) a

District 49[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Chad Putman a

Working Families and Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• James Tedisco: 9,010 a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

• Christian Klueg II: 5,429

November 8 General election candidates:

Chad Putman: 38,884

James Tedisco: 87,056 a

District 50[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

Republican primary candidates:

• John DeFrancisco (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

John DeFrancisco (I) a

District 51[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Jermaine Bagnall-Graham a

Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• James L. Seward (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Jermaine Bagnall-Graham: 31,626

James L. Seward: 84,527 (I) a

District 52[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Sharon Y. Ball a

Working Families

Republican primary candidates:

• Fred Akshar (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Sharon Y. Ball: 30,571

Fred Akshar: 89,180 (I) a

District 53[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• David Valesky (I) a

Independence and Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

November 8 General election candidates:

David Valesky (I) a

District 54[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Kenan Baldridge a

Republican primary candidates:

• Floyd Rayburn: 3,735

Reform

• Pamela Helming: 3,945 a

Conservative and Independence

• Brian Manktelow: 2,123
• Jon Ritter: 952
• Sean Hanna: 1,370

November 8 General election candidates:

Kenan Baldridge: 40,739

Pamela Helming: 74,175 a

Floyd Rayburn: 8,350 (Reform)

District 55[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

Republican primary candidates:

• Rich Funke (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Rich Funke (I) a

District 56[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Ann C. Lewis a

Working Families

Republican primary candidates:

• Joseph Robach (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Ann C. Lewis: 42,764

Joseph Robach: 73,574 (I) a

District 57[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Lee Hyson a

Working Families and Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• Catharine Young (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Lee Hyson: 19,136

Catharine Young: 93,320 (I) a

District 58[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Leslie Danks Burke a

Working Families and Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• Thomas O'Mara (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Leslie Danks Burke: 52,488

Thomas O'Mara: 63,270 (I) a

District 59[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Tom Casey a

Republican primary candidates:

• Patrick Gallivan (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Tom Casey: 37,675

Patrick Gallivan: 100,293 (I) a

District 60[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Alfred T. Coppola: 3,712
• Amber Small: 7,348 a

Working Families and Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• Christopher Jacobs: 4,902 a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

• Kevin T. Stocker: 1,586

Green primary candidates:

• James DePasquale a

November 8 General election candidates:

Amber Small: 51,036

Christopher Jacobs: 77,327 a

James DePasquale: 2,835

District 61[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Thomas A. Loughran a

Working Families and Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• Michael Ranzenhofer (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

Green primary candidates:

• Ruben Cartagena Jr. a

Working Families Party candidates:

• Andre N. Liszka: 13
• Thomas A. Loughran: 46 a

November 8 General election candidates:

Thomas A. Loughran: 53,363

Michael Ranzenhofer: 75,255 (I) a

Ruben Cartagena Jr.: 2,012

District 62[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

Republican primary candidates:

• Robert Ortt (I) a

Conservative, Independence, and Reform

November 8 General election candidates:

Robert Ortt (I) a

District 63[edit]

Democratic primary candidates:

• Timothy M. Kennedy (I) a

Independence, Working Families, and Women's Equality

Republican primary candidates:

• No candidates filed for election.

November 8 General election candidates:

Timothy M. Kennedy (I) a

Margins of victory[edit]

The average margin of victory for contested races in the New York State Senate in 2016 was higher than the national average. Out of 63 races in the New York State Senate in 2016, 48 were contested, meaning at least two candidates competed for that seat in the general election. The average margin of victory across these races was 45.8 percent. Across contested single-winner state legislative elections in 2016, the average margin of victory was 29.01 percent.^[12]

New York State Senate: 2016 Margins of Victory Less than 10 Percent
District	Winning Party	Margin of Victory
District 5	R	1.2 percent
District 6	R	7.7 percent
District 7	R	2.5 percent
District 8	D	0.2 percent
District 9	D	4.4 percent
District 39	R	5.7 percent
District 58	R	9.3 percent

New York State Senate: 2016 Margin of Victory Analysis
Party	Elections won	Average margin of victory[13]	Races with incumbent victories	Average margin of victory for incumbents[13]	Unopposed incumbents	Unopposed races	Percent unopposed
Democratic	32	64.9 percent	29	65.9 percent	8	8	25.0 percent
Republican	31	26.8 percent	27	27.8 percent	7	7	22.6 percent
Total	63	45.8 percent	56	47.3 percent	15	15	23.8 percent

Click [show] on the tables below to see the margin of victory in New York State Senate districts in 2016.

Competitiveness[edit]

Candidates unopposed by a major party[edit]

In 23 of the 63 seats up for election in 2016, there was only one major party candidate running for election. A total of 15 Democrats and eight Republicans were guaranteed election barring unforeseen circumstances.

Two major party candidates faced off in the general election in 40 (63.4 percent) of the 63 seats up for election.

Primary challenges[edit]

Seven incumbents faced primary competition on September 13. Five incumbents did not seek re-election, one seat was vacant, and another 50 incumbents were set to advance past the primary without opposition.

Retired incumbents[edit]

Five incumbent senators did not run for re-election, while 57 incumbents ran for re-election. One seat is vacant. The retiring incumbents—two Democrats and three Republicans—can be found above.

Results from 2014[edit]

See also: 2014 state legislative elections analyzed using a Competitiveness Index

There were 6,057 seats in 87 chambers with elections in 2014. All three aspects of Ballotpedia's Competitiveness Index—the number of open seats, incumbents facing primary opposition, and general elections between partisan candidates—showed poor results compared to the prior election cycle. States with elections in 2014 held fewer general elections between partisan candidates. Additionally, fewer incumbents faced primary opposition and more incumbents ran for re-election than in recent years.

Since 2010, when the Competitiveness Index was established, there had not been an even-year election cycle to do statistically worse in any of the three categories. See the following chart for a breakdown of those scores between each year.

The following table details New York's rates for open seats, incumbents that faced primary challenges, and major party competition in the 2014 general election.

Historical context[edit]

See also: Competitiveness in State Legislative Elections: 1972-2014

Uncontested elections: In 2014, 32.8 percent of Americans lived in states with an uncontested state senate election. Similarly, 40.4 percent of Americans lived in states with uncontested house elections. Primary elections were uncontested even more frequently, with 61 percent of people living in states with no contested primaries. Uncontested elections often occur in locations that are so politically one-sided that the result of an election would be a foregone conclusion regardless of whether it was contested or not.

Open seats: In most cases, an incumbent will run for re-election, which decreases the number of open seats available. In 2014, 83 percent of the 6,057 seats up for election saw the incumbent running for re-election. The states that impose term limits on their legislatures typically see a higher percentage of open seats in a given year because a portion of incumbents in each election are forced to leave office. Overall, the number of open seats decreased from 2012 to 2014, dropping from 21.2 percent in 2012 to 17.0 percent in 2014.

Incumbent win rates: Ballotpedia's competitiveness analysis of elections between 1972 and 2014 documented the high propensity for incumbents to win re-election in state legislative elections. In fact, since 1972, the win rate for incumbents had not dropped below 90 percent—with the exception of 1974, when 88 percent of incumbents were re-elected to their seats. Perhaps most importantly, the win rate for incumbents generally increased over time. In 2014, 96.5 percent of incumbents were able to retain their seats. Common convention holds that incumbents are able to leverage their office to maintain their seat. However, the high incumbent win rate may actually be a result of incumbents being more likely to hold seats in districts that are considered safe for their party.

Marginal primaries: Often, competitiveness is measured by examining the rate of elections that have been won by amounts that are considered marginal (5 percent or less). During the 2014 election, 90.1 percent of primary and general election races were won by margins higher than 5 percent. Interestingly, it is usually the case that only one of the two races—primary or general—will be competitive at a time. This means that if a district's general election is competitive, typically one or more of the district's primaries were won by more than 5 percent. The reverse is also true: If a district sees a competitive primary, it is unlikely that the general election for that district will be won by less than 5 percent. Primaries often see very low voter turnout in comparison to general elections. In 2014, there were only 27 million voters for state legislative primaries, but approximately 107 million voters for the state legislative general elections.

Campaign contributions[edit]

The following chart shows how many candidates ran for State Senate in New York in past years and the cumulative amount of campaign contributions in State Senate races, including contributions in both primary and general election contests.^[14]

State comparison[edit]

The map below shows the average contributions to 2014 candidates for state senates. The average contributions raised by state senate candidates in 2014 was $148,144. New York, at $317,791 per candidate, is ranked six of 42 for state senate chambers with the highest average contributions. Hover your mouse over a state to see the average campaign contributions for that state’s senate candidates in 2014.^[14][15]

Qualifications[edit]

Article 3, Section 7 of the New York Constitution states: "No person shall serve as a member of the legislature unless he or she is a citizen of the United States and has been a resident of the state of New York for five years, and, except as hereinafter otherwise prescribed, of the assembly or senate district for the twelve months immediately preceding his or her election; if elected a senator or member of assembly at the first election next ensuing after a readjustment or alteration of the senate or assembly districts becomes effective, a person, to be eligible to serve as such, must have been a resident of the county in which the senate or assembly district is contained for the twelve months immediately preceding his or her election. No member of the legislature shall, during the time for which he or she was elected, receive any civil appointment from the governor, the governor and the senate, the legislature or from any city government, to an office which shall have been created, or the emoluments whereof shall have been increased during such time."

See also[edit]

• New York State Senate
• New York State Legislature
• State legislative elections, 2016

External links[edit]

Suggest a link

• Primary candidate list
• General election filings

Footnotes[edit]

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