Golden wins in Bay Ridge race

By MELANIE GOLDBERG

Ten-year Republican incumbent Martin Golden was re-elected Tuesday to his State Senate seat in southern Brooklyn, defeating  Democratic opponent Andrew Gounardes.

With all  precincts reporting, Golden had 58  percent of the votes to  42 percent for his challenger.

The 22nd Senate District, which encompasses Bay Ridge, Bensonhurst, Dyker Heights, Marine Park and Gerritsen Beach, has provided the backdrop for a spirited race between the two candidates, focused on negativity and mutual dislike of each other.

Throughout the campaigns, the two pols have sparred over gun control, women’s rights, and Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s running of the city school system. At the Oct. 9 debate sponsored by the Dyker Heights Civic Association, the audience was cheering and booing as if at a boxing match, rooting for their favorite fighter.

Golden, a retired cop, is running for a sixth term in Albany, while this is Gounardes’ first try at elected office, he has served as a lawyer for the non-profit organization Citizens Committee for New York City. Golden first took office in 2002.

The Republicans have controlled the state senate while the Democrats have held sway in the assembly for a number of years now. 
  
The incumbent said he has always listened to residents and worked hard to solve their problems. He said he has brought back from Albany millions of dollars for schools, hospitals, and community organizations. “I have been able to deliver for this community,” he said.