Dem Owens Takes NY-23

Limbaugh: VP should 'reacquaint himself' with Constitution

(NEWSER) - Joe Biden took aim at a variety of GOP and conservative opponents today at a rally for New York congressional candidate Bill Owens. The VP said Conservative candidate Douglas Hoffman was “handpicked” by Rush Limbaugh, adding that Hoffman is in line with conservatives like Sarah Palin who “will not tolerate” dissenting views, the Watertown Daily Times reports. Stand back! More»

Conservative gets a boost, but maybe not a very big one

(NEWSER) - Republican Dede Scozzafava's surprise decision to suspend her congressional race in New York leaves Conservative Doug Hoffman to battle Democrat Dan Owens. Here's what the political blogosphere is saying:

• Nate Silver , FiveThirtyEight: "Gun to my head? Sure, I'd take Hoffman at this point." But it's not that cut and dried: Most conservative Republicans had already defected to Hoffman, so the gain may not be that big.

Hoffman looks to pick up Scozzafava's supporters

(NEWSER) - With late polls inconclusive, Josh Kraushaar of Politico runs down five things to watch in the NY-23 congressional race as returns filter in:

• Dede Scozzafava's supporters: The big question is whether independent-minded GOP voters will go to her endorsed candidate, Democrat Bill Owens, or Conservative Doug Hoffman. Results from her stronghold of Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence counties will tell the tale.
• Syracuse region: This is neutral turf, and Hoffman needs "a decisive victory" here if he hopes to win.

New York race just the beginning, activists say

(NEWSER) - The conservative coup in New York’s special election shows just how little control the GOP has over the ascendant tea party movement—it's a mutiny, and it's just gaining steam, activists say. The folks who helped push Republican Dede Scozzafava out of the race in favor of conservative Doug Hoffman tell Politico they’re itching for the next showdown. “The Hoffman campaign was the beginning. It was not the climax. There are going to be other conflicts,” promised one protest organizer, citing Charlie Crist as the next big target. More»

Hoffman calls Scozzafava a 'turncoat'

(NEWSER) - Sarah Palin-backed conservative upstart Doug Hoffman called Dede Scozzafava a “turncoat” after the New York Republican state assemblywoman endorsed Hoffman’s Democratic opponent, Bill Owens. Scozzafava issued her surprise endorsement a day after pulling out of the upstate congressional race. With prominent conservatives backing Hoffman, an independent, Scozzafava had been running a distant third in the polls. “This afternoon Dede Scozzafava betrayed the GOP,” a spokesman for Hoffman said in a statement. More»