Dems grab another seat, add to state Senate supermajority

ALBANY — Democrats declared victory Monday in a hotly contested upstate race, adding another seat two weeks after already claiming a supermajority in the state Senate.

Schoolteacher John Mannion defeated Republican Angi Renna to win a Syracuse-area seat that has been under GOP control for decades.

“This isn’t just a victory for my campaign, it’s a win for the hardworking residents of this community and for our entire region,” Mannion said. “For too long, we have been left behind, and I look forward to working with my Senate Democratic majority colleagues to ensure this community and communities throughout upstate receive the state support and investment we deserve.”

The win gives Dems 43 seats in the 63-member chamber, one more than the two-thirds needed to attain a supermajority.

Absentee ballots depleted Renna’s Election Day lead and largely favored Mannion, a high school teacher who had failed to beat Republican Bob Antonacci in 2018. Antonacci resigned last year after winning a state

Supreme Court judgeship.

Meanwhile, in the Assembly, Speaker Carl Heastie (D-Bronx) was unanimously nominated Monday to serve another two-year term as leader.

Heastie (inset) previewed the work ahead for the Legislature as the state faces the fiscal fallout of the coronavirus pandemic and Dems control both chambers for the foreseeable future.

“We will work to get New York in a sound fiscal position while maintaining our commitment to delivering our children a quality education and ensuring access to affordable housing, higher education, and health care,” he said. “We will continue to build on our groundbreaking criminal justice achievements to help build a more just and fair society. And we will continue our work to make New York a national model when it comes to preserving and protecting our environment.”