On a chilly and blustery afternoon nearly two weeks out from a historic primary to replace retiring Congressman Mike McNulty (D-Green Island), Albany Mayor Jerry Jennings welcomed an array of elected officials, campaign staffers, union members, and regular Democrats like myself to a Unity Rally to support Paul Tonko, Democratic nominee for Congress in New York’s 21st Congressional District.
It was the closing moment of a long, hard-fought primary in which five Democrats, including Tracey Brooks, Phil Steck, Darius Shahinfar, and Joe Sullivan (who did not attend) emerged with fewer votes than Paul Tonko, a 23-year veteran of the New York State Assembly and former President and CEO of the New York State Energy and Research Development Authority. Tonko won the primary on Tuesday, Sept 9, with 39% of the vote, a full nine points ahead of his nearest rival.
Cameras were there, alright, but noon-time news reports gave only a few seconds of coverage to the rally. My tape recorder was running the entire time, and below the fold is full coverage of the unity rally for any Democrat who was unable to attend.
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