Murphy Campaign Comments On Governor's Meddling In Sd-40

BALDWIN PLACE, NY - Following Thursday night's massive rally and convention nominating incumbent Senator Terrence Murphy for re-election, his campaign this morning commented on the stunning implosion of the Democratic party's nominating process in the 40th Senate District covering Westchester and the Hudson Valley. Reports say progressive activists are left feeling infuriated and betrayed after the Governor himself was working the phones over the weekend to coax former County Legislator Peter Harckham, who was crushed 58 to 42 in a 2010 special election for State Assembly, to enter the SD-40 race and primary presumptive Democratic nominee Robert Kesten, who thus far had racked up over twenty endorsements.

Martha Ruiz Jiménez, the spokesperson for the Committee to Elect Terrence Murphy said, "This is unsurprising as Robert Kesten was already discredited as a candidate by the Westchester County Fair Campaign Practices Committee. I'm getting my popcorn ready as we watch the bickering. So much for Democratic unity."

Harckham got "'creamed' with independents" in the 2010 special election, according to the New York Daily News. It is unclear if Harkcham remains with the Governor's administration as Assistant Director of the Office of Community Renewal at the Office of Homes and Community Renewal. After years of inactivity, Harckham's campaign Facebook and website were relaunched late last week and read to stay tuned for a major announcement.

Kesten has already been endorsed by 20 activist groups including the Beekman, Cortlandt, Carmel, Lewisboro, Mount Pleasant, New Castle, North Salem, Patterson, Peekskill and Yorktown Democratic Committees and Up2Us, the Harmony Huddle, Beekman Indivisible, the Putnam Progressives, Indivisible Yorktown, CCoHOPE, Voices Rising and CD17 Indivisible.

"The Governor must feel that the so-called Indivisible movement is a joke," Ruiz Jiménez said. "He clearly doesn't trust local Democrats to make the right call, but while knifing them in the back, he is recycling a stale candidate who once sought to join Shelley Silver and saddled northern Westchester with the HUD settlement. Voters have already rejected Peter Harckham and they will do so again if given the chance."