ALBANY - Gov. Andrew Cuomo won re-election Tuesday as he rode "the blue wave" to a third term and beat Republican Marc Molinaro and three third-party candidates.
Cuomo, who was first elected in 2010, inundated the airwaves with ads touting his record and his criticism of President Donald Trump, spending more than $31 million on his re-election bid.
The message resonated, and voters gave Cuomo a third term in a state with twice as many Democrats as Republicans. The Associated Press called the race when polls closed at 9 p.m.
READ: 2018 Election Results
Turnout was strong across the state as voters went to the polls to also decide congressional and state races that were on the ballot.
"I am humbled by the support of New Yorkers. I am gratified by their trust," Cuomo said in his acceptance speech in Manhattan. "I will work every day to vindicate the confidence that the people of the state of New York have put in me."
The other candidates were unable to compete in fundraising, leaving them to cross the state to build support on the ground for their candidacies.
Molinaro, the Dutchess County executive, said he made 40 stops across the state in the final days of the race. He expressed optimism that New Yorkers would want change, but gave a conciliatory concession speech Tuesday night.
"Politics ends today," Molinaro told supporters.
"It is our responsibility as New Yorkers and as leaders in our own right to come together for the common good, to put aside differences and to focus on making our state better for the people who call it home."
Battle for votes
Molinaro sought to distance himself somewhat from Trump by saying he didn't vote for the president in 2016, but he didn't answer Cuomo at their lone debate when the governor pressed him on whether he supports Trump.
Cuomo, 60, is "not telling the truth and he’s not telling the truth for a reason," Molinaro said in an interview last month with the USA Today Network's Albany Bureau.
"He wants this race to be about somebody and something else."
Cuomo has cut ties with the Senate Republicans who have controlled the chamber since he took office, and he has pushed this election year for Democrats to win the Senate.
If Democrats take the Senate on Tuesday, Cuomo would have his first Democratic-led Legislature to work with, allowing him to continue to pursue a progressive agenda that he has touted on the campaign trail.
"Judge me on my performance," Cuomo said Tuesday.
"Look at where we were and look at where we are today. I walked into office we had a $10 billion deficit. Our New York government was a joke on late-night TV, literally. It couldn’t function at all.
"Seven years later, every budget has been on time. We’ve lowered taxes for every New Yorker. That’s right: a Democrat lowered taxes for every New Yorker."
The state budgets were late 20 years in a row, but Cuomo has had the budgets approved before or close to the April 1 deadline. He lowered income taxes for all New Yorkers, but also kept a higher rate for the rich, which in 2010 he said he would not keep.
Next four years
Cuomo, however, has racked up a series of progressive accomplishments, including moving New York toward a $15 an hour minimum wage, installing 12 weeks of paid family leave and providing free SUNY tuition to income-eligible students.
But he said there is more to do, such as the Child Victims Act that would allow sexually abused victims to sue their accusers regardless of when the incidents happened.
He also wants to codify Roe vs. Wade into state law, saying it would protect against any federal actions to strip away abortion rights.
"I’m all about getting things done for the people of the state, and we have," Cuomo said Tuesday. "And we have more to do, and I want to help be part of getting it done."
Cuomo has also sparred with Trump, vowing to fight federal policies that impact New York, such as a $10,000 cap on state and local income-tax deductions, called SALT, that could hurt wealthier residents.
All of it has fueled speculation that Cuomo will run for president in 2020, although he pledged he is not interested.
"I have no problem working with Democrats and Republicans," Cuomo said during the Oct. 23 debate.
"I do have a problem with what my opponent represents, and is happening in Washington, these extreme conservative, divisive people who are anti-woman, anti-LGBTQ, and it's -- anti-New York."
Cuomo was ahead by 13 percentage points against Molinaro, according to a Siena College poll Sunday.
That was the closest the race has been after Cuomo easily dispatched actress Cynthia Nixon in a September primary.
In 2010, Cuomo won his first term by beating Republican Carl Paladino by 63 percent to 33 percent. In 2014, he beat then-Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino by 54 percent to 40 percent.
On the campaign trail
Molinaro sought to portray himself as a moderate Republican while at the same time embracing the Conservative Party that endorsed him.
While he is pro-life, he said he would not infringe on New York's abortion laws. And while he voted against same-sex marriage as a former state assemblyman, he said he has evolved on the issue.
"He’s not running against me, right? He’s running against Donald Trump," Molinaro said. "He doesn’t want his record judged. He wants us to pay attention to Washington.”
Molinaro, 43, started his political career at age 19 as the mayor of his hometown of Tivoli in Dutchess County. He built a resume in public service, culminating with his run for governor.
He initially decided not to run for the seat, but reconsidered after Assembly Minority Leader Brian Kolb, R-Canandaigua, Ontario County, bowed out.
Molinaro embraced the underdog role, wearing an Underdog cartoon pin on his lapel and likening his race to the 1994 upset victory by another little-known gubernatorial candidate George Pataki, who beat then-Gov. Mario Cuomo who was seeking a fourth term.
But while Andrew Cuomo's administration has been embroiled in scandal with the corruption convictions of former top aides and allies, Molinaro was only able to spend about $1.3 million on ads, making it difficult to capitalize broadly on Cuomo's stumbles.
He attacked Cuomo on the failings of the governor's upstate economic programs and the failing transit system in New York City. Molinaro pledged to cut property taxes by 30 percent over five years.
But polls showed Molinaro was struggling to gain traction in the city, which has been an ongoing problem for Republicans — who haven't won a statewide race since Pataki did in 2002.
For the third-party candidates, they were looking to at least get 50,000 votes to keep their parties' lines on the ballot for the next four years.
Larry Sharpe ran on the Libertarian Party candidate; Stephanie Miner on the Serve America Movement line, and Howie Hawkins was the Green Party candidate.
They each were aggressive in attacking Cuomo's policies and offered different perspectives on how to improve the economy, bolster environmental laws and install ethics reforms.