Bill Owens, NY-23 Dem. candidate and wife leave their polling place Tues.
Ten days after former Alaska governor Sarah Palin endorsed Conservative Party candidate Doug Hoffman, and two days before election day, now-ex Republican candidate Dierdre K. Scozzafava withdrew from the race, and endorsed her former opponent, Democrat William Owens. Scozzafava issued a statement approx. 2pm Sunday afternoon, stating: "In Bill Owens, I see a sense of duty and integrity that will guide him beyond political partisanship. He will be an independent voice devoted to doing what is right for New York. Bill understands this district and its people, and when he represents us in Congress he will put our interests first."
Prior to Palin's endorsement, Hoffman was considered a dark horse in the contest, and the GOP establishment was, as expected, backing the establishment candidate -- Scozzafava. Within 24 hours of Palin's endorsement, nearly a quarter-million in cash rolled in to his campaign, along with many high-profile GOP supporters such as Mike Huckabee, Tim Pawlenty, and former NY Governor George Pataki, all following suit in lock step behind Palin, who broke the flood gates in Hoffman's favor. Many high profile Conservative commentators and politicians were backing Scozzafava simply because she was the Republican in the race, however, as soon as Palin broke ranks and spoke out for Hoffman, they all followed. The Huffington Post has already declared Palin the defacto leader of the GOP over it. It appears more true than one might think, as Monday morning, after Scozzafava's withdrawal and "turncoat" endorsement of a "Pelosi Democrat," House Minority Leader John Boehner issued a statement supporting Hoffman and saying he "regrets" that he and other GOP members of Congress spent time and money supporting Scozzafava. A last minute poll in the NY 23rd District special election showed Hoffman jumping ahead of Owens, his Democratic opponent, by 5 points following this debacle inside the GOP. Conservative commentators Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity have also gone to great lengths to support and promote Hoffman's candidacy.
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