George Winner Joins the Parade of Republican Retirements
By Mike Connery on 06/02/2010 @ 05:07 PM
Politics On the Hudson reports that Republican incumbent George Winner will not seek reelection in the fall, bringing the total number of Republican open seats to four:
Sen. George Winner, R-Elmira, made a surprise announcement today that he will not run for re-election this fall, making him the fourth veteran Republican senator this year to abandon his re-election plans.
Sens. Thomas Morahan of Rockland County, Vincent Leibell of Putnam County and Dale Volker of Erie County are leaving the Senate at year’s end, putting pressure on Republicans to hold seats they have long viewed as safe GOP districts.
This is yet another blow to Republicans in what should have been a banner year for their candidates across the board. To recap:
- Vincent Leibell, Dale Volker and Thomas Morahan - all Republican incumbents - have retired or are seeking higher office this year, leaving a string of weak challengers and contentious primaries in their wake.
- A study of voter enrollment data conducted by NYPIRG in April revealed that Democrats saw enrollment gains in 51 of 62 Senate Districts, and that Democrats held an outright registration advantage in 45 districts.
- A poll by Quinnipiac in May showed results similar to those revealed by Siena today. Quinnipiac found anti-incumbent sentiment at its highest point in the poll's history, with Republican base voters showing the highest levels of dissatisfaction.
- Former Republican Majority Leader Joe Bruno was convicted on two felony corruption counts.
- And the shallowness of the Republican political bench was revealed very publicly in a New York Times story in which potential GOP Senate candidates revealed that they declined to run due to a lack of confidence in the Republican leadership.
The New York Republican Party continues to disintegrate in front of our eyes.
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