NY Senate: 2 seats away from flipping?
Man, are things moving fast for a post election season. With Andrea Stewart-Cousins toppling Nick Spano in the 2006 election, the state senate was a mere 3 seats from Democratic control.
Governor-elect Spitzer just named his Homeland Security czar, and it’s Senator Balboni, a Republican, like Joe Robach, in a Dem-majority district. Apparently the senator is gung-ho on security, and Spitzer can add a little “bipartisan” merit badge to his scout uniform. Win-win. From NewsDay:
In short, Spitzer got a rare lawmaker who understands his new portfolio bottom up and top down. In an administration heavy on brilliant legal bureaucrats, that combination will be helpful to the new governor.
What makes it interesting, is that there will be a special election to replace Balboni. In a Dem-majority district. With a new GOP contestant who hasn’t bought some love via member items, etc.
Politically, naming Balboni is what one stunned Republican called “an act of genius.” And it goes beyond the obvious, that Spitzer is making a gesture of bipartisanship by entrusting a crucial task to a Republican.
What elevates Balboni as a master political stroke is that his seat has a great chance to go Democratic in an upcoming special election. The GOP recently lost every statewide race. With its Senate majority down to three seats - Balboni caved in to party pressure last year not to run for attorney general - the loss of his seat could hasten the fall of the state’s last GOP bastion of power.
Not that Balboni’s district is a sure thing for Democrats. The Republicans have at least two popular officeholders in the area who, with the enormous amounts of money the GOP will spend, would have a fair shot to win. Democrats also have internal rivalries, as well as a half-dozen viable wannabes, that could produce some self-destructive scenarios if not quelled.
Should be interesting, especially with Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno under federal investigation and all. Pass the popcorn.
But with a GOP-dominated senate flipped to Dem control, Albany Dems will no longer have anyone else to blame for not enacting needed reforms, like those proposed by the Brennan Center. So we’ll have to do what we can to emotionally prepare them for doing the right thing. 
[...] It looks like Michael Balboni wasn’t the only Republican Senator from a Dem-leaning district that Spitzer asked to serve in his administration. The Newsday blog reports: Nassau Republican sources say Spitzer has reached out to other GOP senators who have Democratic-leaning districts — including Serphin Maltese, who represents part of Queens and who barely won re-election last month. Unlike Balboni, who accepted Spitzer’s offer to become the state’s homeland security chief, Maltese, a longtime Conservative Party activist, turned aside Spitzer’s approach, sources said. [...]
I love an election and this looks like a quality race. Is the Governor going to create some more jobs for repubican state senators in marginal seats?
Hi Will, and, color me impressed that being UK based, you’re interested in NY state politics as well? How big is your brain capacity?
Anyway, yes, it sounds like the Guv may be interested in other GOP senators in marginal seats: http://rochesterturning.com/2006/12/29/the-stuff-dreams-are-made-of/