ELECTION NIGHT 2016
EVERYTHING GOES
SEN. SEWARD’S WAY
By JIM KEVLIN • for www.AllOTSEGO>com
ONEONTA – Eight months ago, Otsego County’s veteran state senator, Jim Seward, was reeling from the body blow of a bladder cancer diagnosis.
He fought back, underwent surgery April 14, and by early summer was declared cancer free, returning to his Oneonta office and his Capitol office on June 1.
This evening, he was on top of his political world:
• He was expected to turn back a challenge from newcomer Jermaine Bagnall-Graham, a Sherburne Democrat, but the tally was overwhelming. With one Chenango County town still out, Seward was leading, 78,281-28,679, claiming 73 percent of the votes.
• His former colleague from the state Legislature, the one-time Assembly Minority Leader John Faso, is bound for Congress, presenting a dependable ally for Seward in the nation’s capital.
• His longtime Democratic collaborator, Assemblyman Bill Magee, the Agriculture Committee chair, turned back a challenge, which allows him and the senator to continue moving legislation through both houses on parallel tracks.
• Most of all, the Buffalo News began reporting an hour ago that the GOP will keep control of the state Senate, meaning Seward will maintain his chairmanship and a key position in the leadership, as the Upper House continues as a bulwark and counterbalance against downstate Democrats.
As the positive results poured in at the Seward’s campaign headquarters on Deitz Street, the smiling senator, his wife Cindy nearby, observed: “I’m humbled and thrilled by the outpouring of support.”
