By Melanie Lekocevic
Capital Region Independent Media
COEYMANS — Election 2022 was a good night for local incumbents in the town and at the state level.
In Coeymans, the two town council members, highway superintendent and town clerk incumbents — all Republicans, were returned to office, along with the GOP town justice candidate, Tammy Eissing (see accompanying article).
At the state level, incumbents from both political parties fared just as well.
U.S. Rep. Paul Tonko, D-20, who represents Coeymans and Ravena, easily won re-election by a 54% to 45% margin over Republican Liz Joy. Tonko had a strong showing in Albany County, receiving 61% of the vote to Joy’s 38%.
Tonko won a majority of votes in each of the four counties he represents with the exception of Saratoga County, where Joy picked up 52% of the vote to Tonko’s 47%.
“Our campaign has always been about delivering results for the Capital Region, fighting for working families, defending voting and abortion rights, and strengthening our democracy — and that campaign doesn’t end tonight just because New Yorkers sent me back to work,” Tonko said. “There is plenty to do and I’m rolling up my sleeves first thing tomorrow morning.”
Assemblyman Chris Tague, R-102, won re-election by a wide margin with 64% of the vote to Democratic challenger Nicholas Chase’s 34%. Tague easily won five of the six counties, or portions of counties, that he represents, with the exception of Ulster County, where Chase picked up 60% of the vote to Tague’s 35%.
“To the people of the 102nd Assembly District, I will never stop fighting for you,” Tague said. “We will continue to work hard to make this state more affordable by bringing down inflation, cutting costs at the fuel pump, at the grocery stores, and in your energy bills. I will work against radicals in the majority to protect our constitutional rights and to make our streets safe by locking up dangerous criminals and overturning the cashless bail policy.”
“I will also continue my work to protect the farmers in our great state,” Tague continued. “Farmers are the lifeblood of our country and reducing the overtime threshold for farm workers is everything wrong with ag policy the Democratic majority has pushed through.”
Coeymans and Ravena are currently represented by Democratic state Sen. Michelle Hinchey in the old configuration of the 46th State Senate District, but with the district lines redrawn by the state this year, Hinchey won re-election in the new 41st State Senate District.
State Sen. Neil Breslin, a longtime Democratic incumbent, won re-election to the new 46th State Senate District, which encompasses Coeymans and Ravena.
Breslin, who has been in office 25 years, defeated Republican challenger Richard Amedure, with 53% of the vote to Amedure’s 44%. Breslin had a particularly strong showing in Albany County, where he received 64% of the vote to Amedure’s 34%, but the Republican won big in Montgomery County, where he got 66% of the vote to Breslin’s 30%.
“I’m so grateful to all the volunteers, union, organizations and especially Team Breslin for all their help and hard work during this campaign. None of this would have been possible without [them],” Breslin said. “Thank you to the voters of [Senate District] 46 for your confidence in me to be your representative in the State Senate for the next two years.”