A PDF version of the following article is available here.

A PDF version of a nonpartisan voting guide is available here.

BREAKING NEWS: Asm. Dede Scozzafava, the Republican Candidate for Congress in NY-23, has suspended her campaign.  The National Republican Conference has thrown its support behind Conservative Doug Hoffman, and now views Mr. Hoffman as its best chance of retaining control of this congressional seat.  Mr. Hoffman is deadlocked with the Democratic candidate, Bill Owens.

Original Article Begins Here

A special election scheduled for November 3, 2009, in New York's 23rd Congressional District has drawn widespread media attention to northern New York.

On June 2, 2009, President Barack Obama appointed Rep. John McHugh, a Republican, to serve as Secretary of the Army.  Rep. McHugh had served in Congress since 1993.  After a lengthy delay, the U.S. Senate confirmed Rep. McHugh on September 16, 2009.  On September 29, 2009, following Rep. McHugh's resignation of his congressional seat, Governor David Paterson scheduled a special election to replace Rep. McHugh.  The special election is scheduled to occur on Election Day (November 3, 2009).  The candidates are Democrat William L. Owens, Republican Assemblymember Dierdre "Dede" Scozzafava, and Conservative Douglas R. Hoffman.

New York's 23rd Congressional District is a sprawling district located in the area known to New Yorkers as the North Country.  The district, which spans portions of 11 counties, borders the State of Vermont and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec.

The upcoming special election is unusual due to the fact that there are three candidates seeking office.  Thus, state and national media began giving the race a great deal of attention long before the election had even been scheduled.

Democratic candidate Bill Owens is an attorney from Plattsburgh, New York, where he serves as a partner at an area law firm.  Owens' campaign web site indicates that he is an Air Force Veteran who helped to redevelop the Plattsburgh Air Force Base.

On the issues, Owens supports the Employee Free Choice Act, also known as card check legislation: this bill would allow labor organizers to avoid the use of a secret ballot process when employees decide whether or not they wish to unionize.  Owens identifies himself as a pro-choice candidate.  While he opposes same-sex marriage, Owens supports civil unions.

According to his campaign web site, Owens has been endorsed by 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East (a labor union) and by New York State Senator Darrel Aubertine (D-Cape Vincent).

For more information on Bill Owens, please visit http://www.billowensforcongress.com/.

The Republican, Asm. Dede Scozzafava

The Republican Party and the Independence Party have nominated New York State Assemblymember Dierdre "Dede" Scozzafava (R-Gouverneur) for Congress.  Before being elected to the Assembly in 1998, Scozzafava served as a village trustee for four years in the Village of Gouverneur; she also served as Mayor of the Village of Gouverneur from 1993 through 1998.  Assemblymember Scozzafava began her tenure in the Assembly in 1999, and currently serves as Minority Leader Pro Tempore for the Assembly Republican Conference.

As a Member of the Assembly, Scozzafava has voted in favor of same-sex marriage, abortion rights, the morning-after pill, and medical marijuana legislation.  Like Bill Owens, Assemblymember Scozzafava has expressed support for the Employee Free Choice Act.

According to her campaign web site, Assemblymember Scozzafava's congressional candidacy has been endorsed by New York State Senator Betty Little (R-Queensbury), pro-same-sex-marriage Assemblymembers Teresa Sayward (R-Willsboro) and Janet Duprey (R-Peru), the family of the late State Senator Ron Stafford, the Oswego County ATV Club, and the Republican Main Street Partnership PAC (a national caucus of centrist Republicans).  In addition, Assemblymember Scozzafava has been endorsed by Daily Kos, a national liberal blog, and has quietly received the endorsement of the Log Cabin Republicans, a pro-homosexual Republican group.

For more information on Asm. Dede Scozzafava, please visit http://www.dedeforcongress.com/.

While The Conservative Party of New York State often endorses Republican candidates, the Party has instead chosen to nominate its own candidate-Doug Hoffman of Lake Placid-in the 23rd District race.  Conservative Party Chairman Mike Long explained the party's decision by stating that Assemblymember Scozzafava "doesn't represent the people of the North Country," and "votes more often than not with the liberal Democrats of New York City".  The Conservative Party has highlighted the fact that in 2008, Assemblymember Scozzafava's voting record received a grade of 15% from the Conservative Party.

Doug Hoffman is an accountant and financial specialist who heads a North Country accounting firm.  Hoffman's campaign web site states that he served as controller for the Lake Placid Olympic Organizing Committee, which helped to orchestrate the 1980 Winter Olympics.

On the issues, Hoffman has stated that he is a pro-life candidate, and that he opposes same-sex marriage, civil unions, and the repeal of the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy on homosexuals in the United States Armed Forces.  Unlike Owens and Scozzafava, Hoffman opposes the Employee Free Choice Act and has signed pledges to oppose pork barrel spending and to vote against tax increases.

Hoffman's candidacy has been endorsed by the Police Benevolent Association of the New York State Troopers.  Hoffman has also received the endorsement of a variety of national figures and groups, including the American Conservative Union, the fiscally conservative Club for Growth, the pro-life Susan B. Anthony List Candidate Fund, Citizens of the Republic, the Concerned Women Political Action Committee (CWPAC), the Citizens United Political Victory Fund, former presidential candidate Fred Thompson, and former presidential candidate Gary Bauer.

For more information on Doug Hoffman, please visit http://www.doughoffmanforcongress.com/.

An October 1, Siena poll found the race for the 23rd to be "a wide-open race". The poll found that Assemblymember Scozzafava held 35% of the vote, with Bill Owens at 28% and Doug Hoffman at 16%.  The poll also found that roughly 20% of voters were undecided, and that "one-third of Scozzafava's current supporters and one-quarter of Owens's current supporters say they are not very certain of their choice and that they very well may change their minds."

UPDATE: A recent Club for Growth poll of 300 likely voters, conducted October 24-25, 2009, shows Conservative Doug Hoffman at 31.3%, Democrat Bill Owens at 27.0%, Republican Dede Scozzafava at 19.7%, and 22% undecided. The poll's margin of error is +/- 5.66%.

 

"Hoffman now has a wide lead among both Republicans and Independents, while Owens has a wide lead among Democrats. Dede Scozzafava's support continues to collapse, making this essentially a two-candidate race between Hoffman and Owens in the final week," concluded Basswood Research's pollster Jon Lerner, who conducted the poll for the Club.

For Christians, the bottom line is to find a candidate that you can support, and get behind them.  If we won't stand with candidates at election time, don't expect elected officials to stand with Christians after the election is over.