© 2024 WSKG

601 Gates Road
Vestal, NY 13850

217 N Aurora St
Ithaca, NY 14850

FCC LICENSE RENEWAL
FCC Public Files:
WSKG-FM · WSQX-FM · WSQG-FM · WSQE · WSQA · WSQC-FM · WSQN · WSKG-TV · WSKA
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Ryan wins special election, holding House seat for Democrats

NY19 Special WEB

Pat Ryan will fill out the remaining four months of the term in the 19th Congressional District, holding on to a battleground district for Democrats ahead of even more contentious midterm races this fall.

The Democratic Ulster County executive defeated Republican Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro, carrying 51% of the vote with all precincts reporting Tuesday

"I can't believe it. I'm so proud, so proud of our community. We stepped up. We stepped up when the whole country was watching. We sent a message,” Ryan told reporters after claiming victory.

Ryan only carried two of the 11 counties in the 19th district–Columbia and Ulster– with the vast majority of his vote share coming from the latter.

Molinaro refused to concede the race Tuesday, despite trailing by almost 3,000 votes with all precincts reporting.

"Stay with us and stay tuned. We're not going anywhere,” Molinaro told a crowd gathered in Hudson.

He did not return to the gathering before supporters and reporters were asked to leave.

Ryan will go on to run in the newly drawn 18th Congressional District in the midterm elections. Molinaro will seek a full term in the newly drawn 19th Congressional District. He will face off against Josh Riley, who won a Democratic primary race against Jamie Cheney, Tuesday night.

Vaughn Golden has been reporting across New York since 2016. Working as a freelancer while studying journalism and economics at Ithaca College, Vaughn has reported for a number of outlets including the Albany Times Union, New York Post, and NPR among others. Prior to coming to WSKG full-time, Vaughn was a reporter for the Watertown Daily Times. Vaughn now covers government and politics for WSKG.