The day after a stinging defeat to Rep. Thomas M. Reynolds, the self-styled “maverick” Jack Davis had some stinging rebukes and thoughtful critiques of his effort to win New York’s 26th District.

He said he stood by remarks made to reporters after his concession speech, where he criticized Reynolds. He also expressed pride that he “severely injured him” and contributed to Democrats’ success across the nation.

Reynolds, the chair of the Republican National Campaign Committee, was forced to remain in his home district and use resources that might have gone to benefit other Republicans, Davis said.

“In some small way, I can take credit for taking control of the House away from the Republicans,” Davis said.

In his second rebuke from voters in as many elections, Davis said he wouldn’t rule out another run, though he will be 75 when Reynolds next has to defend the seat in two years.

“Everything (in the nation) is screwed up, and they still re-elect the guy,” he said.

He recounted a sad scene at campaign headquarters as the news came across of the slim Reynolds victory, with just a few thousand votes separating them when the final vote was tallied. Some of his staff were in tears at the news.

“I thought I was going to win and we lost,” Davis said. “That’s very depressing. I felt so bad ... for my staff. It was bad. You put a strong face on. This was one battle lost, but we’re going to win the war for the middle class.”

Canisius College political science guru Kevin Hardwick said he was impressed with how much Davis was able to do against an entrenched incumbent with a solid district of base supporters.

“Were it not for the storm, he would have beaten him,” Hardwick said.

Reynolds, who was down substantially in polls following the news he was linked to the Mark Foley scandal, rebounded strongly during the surprise October snowstorm. Reynolds was a frequent figure on television in the storm’s aftermath, helping to secure a FEMA disaster designation.

Davis maintained the district would be better served with himself as their representative.

“I felt the people aren’t being represented and I could do a better job,” Davis said.

Reconciling that fact with the political reality — that the voters simply don’t agree — has been difficult, he said. He isn’t taking it out on voters, but a system that he said is self-serving for incumbents.

“It’s a gerrymandered district,” Davis said.

Much was made of Davis’ unorthodox campaign style, where he seemingly refused to campaign in traditional channels, instead relying solely on media to communicate with voters, through ads and news reports.

The decision led many to think Davis was running a shut-in campaign, perhaps adding to the persona cultivated in commercials by Reynolds surrogates charging he was a “kook.”

In hindsight, Davis agreed he was “controlled, more than I was comfortable with.”

If he does run again, Davis said he would make it a priority to speak for himself more, rather than rely on spokesmen.

“If somebody wants to talk to me, I want to talk to them,” Davis said. “It’s very important to talk to the reporters and the press and the people.”

As for the lack of in-person campaigning, Davis said he learned from 2004 that events can draw lackluster crowds that don’t make for “an efficient use of my time.”

The few public, unscripted forays Davis did make, however, came back to bite him. Transcripts of radio interviews found where Davis admitted that, under extreme circumstances, changes might need to be made to Social Security. That admission, said Hardwick, was probably harmful to the Davis effort.

But, Hardwick said, it’s cause to re-evaluate the process when candidates are punished for honest responses.

“It doesn’t say a lot, does it?” Hardwick said of the ads. “We really need to look at the way our campaigns are conducted. Unfortunately, the people in the power to change all that are the ones who have benefited from the current state of the affairs.”

Contact Eric DuVall at 439-9222, Ext. 6251.