Posted By: Tom Hustler
Wed Nov 8, 7:16 PM ET
Madison County's prosecutor thinks a video gambling crackdown that prompted some area taverns to close is one reason why he lost Tuesday's re-election bid, but he says a countywide swing toward his opponent's party was a bigger factor.
ADVERTISEMENT
if (window.yzq_a == null) document.write("");if (window.yzq_a)
{
yzq_a('p', 'P=I1GleULaS.bbTj6ujZBP.QWLSDRIwkVSvUwAAGms&T=17sq550ot%2fX%3d1163050316%2fE%3d38062106%2fR%3dnews%2fK%3d5%2fV%3d1.1%2fW%3d8%2fY%3dYAHOO%2fF%3d1638612936%2fH%3dY2FjaGVoaW50PSJuZXdzIiBjb250ZW50PSJ2aWRlbztlbGVjdGlvbjtEZW1vY3JhdDtEZW1vY3JhdGljO1JlcHVibGljYW47aXQ7IiByZWZ1cmw9IiIgdG9waWNzPSIi%2fS%3d1%2fJ%3d8BA949D1');
yzq_a('a', '&U=13a0bq0ff%2fN%3dzYbWAUJe5tk-%2fC%3d559310.9471020.10260328.1442997%2fD%3dLREC%2fB%3d4080539');
}
Prosecutor Rodney Cummings was one of 12 Republicans to lose a county race Tuesday. Only the treasurer post was won by a GOP member.
"This is a very humbling experience," said Cummings, who lost by 14 percentage points to Thomas Broderick Jr., a Democrat and former defense attorney.
Cummings was involved in a case in which authorities seized more than 20 bars and restaurants in Madison, Delaware and Henry counties on suspicion the businesses were linked to an illegal gambling operation.
Twenty-nine people, including former state Teamsters boss John L. Neal, were booked into the Madison County Jail in connection with the case.
Investigators said they believed Neal, 69, owned video poker machines that were distributed to the businesses. They said Neal owned the bars and restaurants but sold them on contract to other people.
Some of the restaurants' operators criticized Cummings, saying he overstepped his bounds by being involved in the seizures.
Cummings said he believes his prosecution of Neal had something to do with his loss Tuesday.
"But I don't believe that was the (main) reason why this happened," Cummings told 6News' Jeremy Brilliant.
Cummings said 10,000 voters -- one-fourth of the county's electorate -- chose to cast a straight Democratic Party ballot. That meant votes not only for county Democrats, but also those who were running for Congress, the state General Assembly and statewide offices such as secretary of state.
Kevin Sulc, chairman of Madison County's Republican Party, said frustration over the war in Iraq and other national issues led to the many Democratic victories in the county.
"They decided to take out their frustrations on local candidates that really have nothing to do with what's going on nationally," Sulc said.
Broderick, the prosecutor-elect, said those frustrations might have helped him, but he said it wasn't the main factor.
"I think the deciding factor was the hard work we put forth in the campaign," Broderick said.
Cummings said he wasn't sure what was next for him.
"I'm not certain what I'm going to do yet. I just need some time to think about it," Cummings said.
The information reported above is property of Yahoo! inc. and reprinted or modified with legitimate permission.