New York junior Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D) on a campaign stop with Congressional candidate Scott Murphy (D) at a diner in Brunswick, New York during the 2009 special election for the 20th congressional district of New York. New York Governor David Paterson replaced former Senator Hillary Clinton with Senator Gillibrand (the former Congresswoman from New York's 20th congressional district) upon her accession of the office of United States Secretary of State in the Obama administration. Murphy won that election and represented New York's 20th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives until he was beat by challenger Chris Gibson in 2010.
John M. McHugh was nominated to becomeUnited States Secretary of the Army, necessitating a special election to fill his seat. Democratic candidateBill Owens won the special election on November 3, 2009, defeating the Conservative candidateDoug Hoffman and the Republican candidateDierdre Scozzafava, which as a result, marks the first time that a Democrat represented parts of this district since the Civil War.[1]
Albany MayorGerald Jennings was re-elected to a fifth term, defeating City Councilman Corey Ellis (who ran as a Working Families Party candidate) and Republican Nathan Lebron.[2]
Democratic incumbentMatt Driscoll was term-limited. DemocratStephanie Miner defeated Republican Steve Kimatian and became Syracuse's first female mayor.[3]
