By Mark Scott
Buffalo, NY – Republican Jack Quinn, the third, won the 146th Assembly district seat Tuesday, defeating Democrat Fran Pordum.
It marked yet another victory for the Quinn family. His father had been elected to Congress six times before deciding not to seek re-election this year -- a fact noted by the younger Quinn in his acceptance speech Tuesday night.
"I want to thank my friends and family for putting up with this," Quinn said. "My family basically thought they were getting out of this, but got sucked right back in."
Pordum waited out the results at his headquarters on Lake Shore Boulevard in Hamburg. He says he ran a clean campaign based on issues. Pordum, who once represented the 146th Assembly district, gave up the seat in 1996 to run for Congress against the elder Quinn. After losing his three previous comeback attempts, Pordum said he's ready to give politics a rest.
"I want to spend some time with my wife. I just got married during the campaign," Pordum said. "I want to clear my mind. It was a lot of work. We made a lot of good friends. I really enjoyed going out there and discussing the issues with people. That's what government is all about."
Quinn will succeed Democratic Assemblyman Dick Smith, who decided not to seek re-election.