HILLTOWNS — Republican Assemblyman Chris Tague has once again successfully defended his seat from a Democratic challenger in the 102nd Assembly District, giving him another two years in a position he’s held since 2018, according to the New York State Board of Elections’ unofficial results. 

Janet Tweed, a physical therapist who currently serves on the Delhi Village Council and was formerly on the Delhi Town Board, got 22,819 votes to Tague’s 40,392 — a 36-64 split, with about 3.5 percent of all ballots cast left blank or going to a write-in candidate. 

Albany County was where Tweed performed best, getting 39 percent of voters to Tague’s 57 percent. 

Tague was especially dominant in his home county, Schoharie, getting 70 percent of the vote while Tweed got just 28 percent. Schoharie County also had the lowest percentage of blank, voided, and write-in ballots. 

The largely rural 102nd District is a difficult one to win for Democrats, with 35,127 enrolled Republicans as of February of this year; 26,920 Democrats; and 24,779 unenrolled voters. Tague won his last two re-elections with about 65 percent of the vote share. 

Both expressed to The Enterprise a need for more resources in the district’s rural communities in their candidate interviews last month, and both called the state’s climate goals “lofty” while acknowledging the reality of climate change. 

However, Tweed cited affordable healthcare as one of her top issues, while Tague, a dairy farmer, said he hoped to continue his work as ranking member of the Assembly’s agricultural committee to make sure that city-minded legislatures didn’t overlook the state’s farmers.

“I am absolutely humbled and honored to have been re-elected for a fifth time to the New York State Assembly,” Tague said in a victory statement. “I’m incredibly proud of the women and men who worked with me to get me here, and for them, I am eternally grateful. 

“But my re-election is not my victory alone. It’s a victory for rural New York. It’s a statement that shows our community remains engaged and focused on delivering the best life we can to every New Yorker. I will continue to fight for New Yorkers — for a safer state for them to live in, for an economy that works for them and for a future they can rely on. 

“We’ve got a lot of work ahead of us, and I’m just as excited and energized as ever to continue delivering for all the people of the 102nd Assembly District.”