SD-43: Russo Beats Premo, Will Face McDonald In November

by: robert.harding

Wed Sep 10, 2008 at 13:13:34 PM EDT

But it was Mike Russo who pulled out the Democratic primary over Brian Premo. Russo did it convincingly too, beating Premo 2 to 1. It was not a good night for Premo. He also lost the Working Families Party line. The WFP endorsed Premo but Christopher Consuello won to get on the ballot in November.  

This race will be a tough one, but Russo is a strong candidate to have in our corner. Here is more on the race (from the Times-Union):

McDonald, R-Saratoga, defeated Nassau Councilman Ray Seney in the GOP primary 8,779 to 1,507 with all election districts reporting, according to unofficial results from the Rensselaer County and Saratoga County Boards of Election. McDonald also will appear on the Independence and Conservative lines in the Nov. 4 general election.

``I've always been project oriented,'' McDonald said. ``I've always looked for results. We'll contribute to a positive dialogue.''

Bruno endorsed McDonald and his Senate staff worked on the campaign.

Senate Majority Leader, Dean Skelos, R-Rockeville Center, Bruno's successor, appeared with McDonald last week to hand over a $1.1 million check to Rensselaer to help the municipality recover from flood damage.

In the Democratic primary, Russo of Saratoga defeated Brian Premo of Brunswick 5,119 to 2,598 with all of the election districts reporting, according to unofficial results.

``It's been a tremendous effort in a very short time. It's on to make a difference in the 43rd,'' said Russo, who has the backing of organized labor.

Russo won handily (as did McDonald) but the fact that Premo couldn't even hold onto the WFP line speaks volumes.

ON THE WEB:

Mike Russo's ActBlue Page