Former Assembly Member Billy Jones' last day in office was this past Friday, but his resignation’s effect on North Country politics and state government has been felt for weeks. Committee chairs have been shuffled , and a special election will soon be called to fill his 115th Assembly District seat.

The special election will be one of Republicans’ better pick-up opportunities in New York, assuming they can play nice after a fraught candidate selection process. But Democrats are confident they will be able to hold on to the seat, which has long been an outlier in the region, and possibly even carry that momentum over to a campaign to replace Rep. Elise Stefanik, should she vacate her seat and run for governor.

The district covers Clinton, Franklin and Essex counties and lies within Ste

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