After more than three months since the November election and dozens of days in court, former Republican Rep. Claudia Tenney is back in Congress.
A New York Supreme Court judge on Friday ruled that Oneida County and the Electoral Council can confirm their final results for the 22nd New York Congress, which increased Tenney by 109 votes to Democratic incumbent Anthony Brindisi.
REPUBLICAN RENTAL ELECTION CHAIR SS COMMANDED MANAGEMENT ORDERS TAKEN BY THE HOUSMAKER FOR GOP
Although there are likely to be legal challenges – Brindisi’s lawyers are appealing the decision to the appeals department and say the certification should be suspended until after a hand count – the decision means Tenney will be sitting in the House of Representatives.
Tenney took to Twitter to write “I am grateful to the voters and supporters after 94 days of a difficult election process that they once again had the privilege of serving our community in the House of Representatives.”
The outcome is a pickup for the IDP.
When Tenney is sworn in, the Democrats’ majority in the House will shrink to 221-212 over Republicans.
There are two more vacancies, and both are in Louisiana. One is the seat of former Democratic Rep. Cedric Richmond, who joined President Biden’s government last month. The other was the seat won by the late GOP election last November, Luke Letlow.
The new margin means Democrats can only lose four votes and still pass a bill without the help of Republicans from the House.
FILE – In this file photo on November 6, 2018, Republican Congresswoman Claudia Tenney indicates that she successfully cast her vote after voting in St. George’s Church in New Hartford, NY. On Tuesday, December 1, 2020, Chenango County notified a state judge that it had discovered 55 early-voting votes that had not been selected by the local election council, and therefore were not included in the total of votes in the extremely tough race between Tenney and U.S. Representative Anthony Brindisi. The latest results – which do not include the ballot papers – put Tenney ahead of Brindisi by 12 votes. (AP Photo / Heather Ainsworth, file)
Tenney was first elected to Congress in 2016, with Brindisi ousting her in 2018.
With such an extremely close vote between the two candidates, the campaigns have been fighting in court since November over everything, including what appears to be an extra point on a disputed paper vote. The two sides were not even about whether it was a bloodstain or a stain of chocolate. This was an important distinction – as blood on the ballot papers is considered an identifying marker.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
The New York borough includes the cities of Utica, Rome, Cortland and Binghamton and some of the suburbs of Syracuse.
Rep. Tom Emmer, chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee, congratulated Tenney and called her “a proven fighter for the state of New York, who will stop where she left off in providing dual solutions for her district.”