State Senate Dems Will Have Supermajority, Stewart-Cousins Says

HUDSON VALLEY, NY — With the victory of incumbent Democrat Sen. Pete Harckham over Republican challenger Rob Astorino in the 40th Senate District, the New York Senate achieved a threshold that means Democrats will have more control of their agenda.

Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, D-Yonkers, said Monday that Democrats will hold at least 42 seats in the Senate and, thus, will have a supermajority.

"We know that on election night many people wrote us off," she said during a new conference Monday. "They said it was a big red wave."

However, "the big red wave turned out to be more of a red mirage," Stewart-Cousins said.

The supermajority means Senate Democrats will not have to depend on Republicans to help overturn a veto by Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

"The numbers prove that after the most productive legislative session in history New Yorkers have not only chosen to return a Democratic majority, but again they chose to return a supermajority," Stewart-Cousins said.

Watch the majority leader's news conference above.

SEE ALSO: Harckham Declares Victory In 40th NY Senate District Race