Cecilia Tkaczyk considerably won the Democratic primary in the 46th Senate District by receiving more than half of the votes in the three-way race.
Tkaczyk, of Duanesburg, secured 3,156 votes after primary results rolled in from Montgomery, Schenectady, Albany, Greene and Ulster counties, according to unofficial numbers. Greene County results didn’t roll in until after election night, but it was already clear Tkaczyk had claimed a comfortable victory.
“The overwhelming amount of support I’ve received in these last few months has been truly inspiring,” Tkaczyk said in a statement. “To be able to come out of this primary with these strong numbers is going to propel me to victory in November.”
Thomas Dolan fell more than 1,000 votes behind Tkaczyk, with 1,941 votes. Monica Arias Miranda, who labeled herself an “independent Democrat,” garnered 859 votes.
Tkaczyk’s biggest win in the election was a landside in Ulster County, where she secured 1,052 votes, with her Democratic challengers only nabbing 358 votes combined.
The only county in which Tkaczyk wasn’t the top pick was Albany County, where Dolan collected about 45 percent of the total and Tkaczyk 39 percent. A Coeymans Town Board member, Dolan was the only candidate from Albany County in the race.
Tkaczyk’s campaign touted her win as an “unprecedented victory” and Tkaczyk said the strong support bodes well for her general election chances against Republican George Amedore.
“I am going to work very hard to get my message out and I see myself as a very strong candidate,” Tkaczyk said.
Tkaczyk garnered many prominent endorsements and outraised her opponents. Tkaczyk’s campaign reported having $60,000 on hand days before the election, having spent nearly $30,000.
Arias Miranda thanked her supporter in a Facebook post acknowledging her defeat.
“I did not win the Democratic line but am very proud of the integrity under which I ran my campaign,” Arias Miranda said. “I look forward to staying in touch with the many new friends I have made across the way and continuing my work in the community.”
The Tkaczyk campaign had already taken shots at Amedore before the primary election. Some lawmakers have argued the newly drawn senate district was carved out with an Amedore bid in mind, but Tkaczyk said voters ultimately choose a representative, not a party.
“Issues are going to be what wins the election,” Tkaczyk said. “Nobody drew a district for me … I decided I wanted to run because there are serous issues we need to address in Albany that are not getting addressed.”
Tkaczyk presumed Green Party winner
There is still one ballot line up in the air after the primary though: the Green Party. The primary for the party was an opportunity to ballot, which allowed party members to write in anyone’s name.
Unofficial and incomplete election results put Tkaczyk in the lead by four votes over Dolan, with Arias Miranda likely trailing too much to take the lead. Tkaczyk has 15 votes, with Dolan trailing at 11 votes and Arias Miranda holding eight, according to the latest information available before The Spotlight went to press.
Ulster County saw the most total write-ins cast, with Dolan securing eight votes, Tkaczyk holding six votes and Arias Miranda with five votes, which includes one absentee ballot in the total. The county Board of Elections said it doesn’t expect to receive any more absentee ballots, but couldn’t confirm how many were sent out.
Albany County had 13 write-in votes, which included one blank ballot. Tkaczyk took the lead with six votes and both Dolan and Arias Miranda secured three votes. There was also one absentee ballot sent out, but it hadn’t been returned as of Tuesday, Sept. 18.
In Montgomery there were only three write-ins for Tkaczyk and as Monday, Sept. 17, there was one absentee ballot sent out but not returned.
There were no write-in votes in Greene County and no absentee ballots were sent out, according to the county Board of Elections.
The Schenectady County Board of Elections declined to say who two write-in votes were cast for until the results were certified on Thursday, Sept. 20. Also, no information on absentee ballots was released.
Visit spotlightnews.com for updated information after certified results are released on Thursday.