COMPTROLLER

Hevesi overcomes scandal to win

NEW YORK — Comptroller Alan Hevesi survived a political scandal over his use of a state-paid chauffeur for his ailing wife, beating back a surging Republican challenger J. Christopher Callaghan Tuesday to win a second four-year term.

With 65 percent of precincts reporting, Hevesi had 1,359,268 votes, or 58 percent, to Callaghan’s 865,532 votes, or 37 percent.

“Tonight has been a perfect night for the people of New York state,” Hevesi said.

Even with the win, Hevesi still faces possible removal from office and a criminal investigation.



ATTORNEY GENERAL

Democrat Cuomo beats Pirro to revive career

NEW YORK — Democrat Andrew Cuomo, pledging to go after government corruption and continue Eliot Spitzer’s work as a crusader against corruption, resurrected his political career Tuesday by defeating Republican Jeanine Pirro in the race for attorney general.

The call for Cuomo was based on a number of factors, including voter turnout, previous voting patterns and a statistical analysis of the vote from voter interviews conducted for The Associated Press by Edison Media Research and Mitofsky International.

With 63 percent of precincts reporting, Cuomo had 1,420,373 votes, or 60 percent, to Pirro’s 896,608, or 38 percent.

Cuomo pledged to fight corruption on Wall Street, battle discrimination, protect the environment, take illegal guns off the streets and make state government more accountable.



ASSEMBLY

Hayes wins re-election over Grelick

The state Assembly representative for Amherst and part of North Tonawanda was decided early, with incumbent Jim Hayes, R-Amherst, taking a quick lead and never looking back.

“I feel really good that the voters have come out and reinforced the support that they’ve given me,” Hayes said. “They’ve made the message loud and clear. They want me to continue my job.”

With 70 percent of districts reporting, Hayes had nearly double the votes of his challenger, Democrat and former Amherst Supervisor Susan Grelick.

Amherst Councilman Dan Ward, who worked with Grelick on the Town Board for several years, said she had an uphill battle. He knew from experience.

“I ran against Jim Hayes twice and I lost to him,” Ward said. “He’s proved a very resilient vote-getter. He’s a tough guy to beat.”