Doug Hoffman, the Conservative Party nominee in the NY-23 special election in 2009, has announced that he’s moving into the district as he mounts a second campaign for the seat.
“I have a signed purchase agreement for a house in Saranac Lake,” Hoffman told the Adirondack Daily Enterprise. “I expect to close on that within a month, and I will be moving into that house. It will become my primary residence.”
Hoffman’s campaign successfully forced moderate Republican Dede Scozzafava out of the race, only to see Scozzafava endorse Democrat Bill Owens, and for Owens to win the special election by 48%-46% margin. This was a pick-up for the Democrats, after incumbent Republican Rep. John McHugh had been appointed Secretary of the Army by President Obama.
Hoffman did not live in the district, but was located just slightly outside of it in Lake Placid. It should be noted that the United States Constitution does not require members of the House of Representatives to live in their districts, only within the state.
Eric Kleefeld
Eric Kleefeld joined TPM as an intern for the final months of the 2006 midterm elections, and then kept showing up for work. His other interests include guitars, old comic books and the politics of various English-speaking countries.
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