Defections to GOP upend N.Y. Senate

ALBANY, N.Y., June 9 (UPI) -- New York state politics has been thrown into tumult by the defections of two senators to the Republican Party, analysts say.

The surprise moves by the former Democrats, Pedro Espada Jr. of the Bronx and Hiram Monserrate of Queens, gave the GOP the majority in the state Senate with 32 seats and derailed the Democrats' agenda with only two weeks left the legislative session in Albany, The New York Times reported.

The pair's defections threw power in the Senate back to the Republicans, who had controlled the chamber for 40 years until Democrats assumed power in January, the newspaper said. The episode reportedly added to the political turmoil in New York's capital, which has seen four Senate presidents in recent months and three governors in less than three years.

New York Gov. David Paterson at a Monday news conference said the moves by the one-time Democrats were "an outrage," declaring the Legislature had become a "dysfunctional wreck" and vowing, "I will not allow this," although he acknowledged there was really nothing anyone could do.

The developments were seen as a blow to Democrats' efforts to push bills giving tenants more rights and legalizing same-sex marriage.