The twin endorsements of the Watertown Daily Times and Assemblywoman Diedre Scozzafava provided the last minute momentum to propel Democrat Bill Owens to a win over Doug Hoffman in NY23, according to the New York Times. Also backing the claim is Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) who heads the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Its all laid out in the attached campaign analysis.

The NY Times reports Democrats pressured the local paper for a quick endorsement to help sway Scozzafava voters in the western counties of the 23rd. Greater Watertown voters were the only ones still in play in the final hours as Scozzafava's campaign had collapsed in the eastern and southern stretches of the 23rd.

I suspect lining up the endorsement came prior to Scozzafava's 10 AM Saturday before-the-election withdrawal from the race. At that time, I approached Times Publisher John Johnson Jr at the Flower Library book sale and pitched him to consider switching his support to Hoffman based on a need for GOP values on fiscal matters and the fact that at the time while little was known about Hoffman, even less was known about Owens and his agenda. I left feeling it was an open subject and later that day at the request of the Hoffman camp, I tried to set up a meeting between Times Managing Editor Bob Gorman and their press guy Rob Ryan.

A previous blowup during an editorial board meeting attended by Hoffman had left the novice candidate skittish about the paper.
By the time I got a hold of Gorman Sunday morning the Owens endorsement editorial was already in print, so it was all moot.

The nature of the pressure the NY Times said was used to get the local endorsement is unknown, but I suspect the pitch was made that Owens can do more on issues the paper was concerned about, particularly ones related to the Seaway, water levels, and hydropower. These are all matters the Democratic President and Congress could address.

I would suspect an appeal was made that Owens would pledge access and would work with the publisher.

Meanwhile, the paper's animosity to Hoffman was palpable and whether any relationship could exist was certainly in question.

Watertown media was very close to Ms. Scozzafava and her candidacy was seen as the home-team effort.

As her effort was immolated in the national culture wars, media was torn between two men they didn't know. The endorsement and subsequent blogs by key Times staffers suggest Owens was their clear choice and in conjunction with the endorsement by Ms. Scozzafava, I would suspect Hoffman was made to looked a little risky to some and Owens, the carefully vetted candidate of the West Wing, looked more solid and predictable.

Of course, the sophisticated Democratic ground game tested in other battles was a key as well. Over 100,000 potential voters were contacted and cultivated personally by a small army of DCCC workers and volunteers. That was all happening beneath the radar.

These after-action reports on NY 23 are numerous, but for political science types, the dynamics of this race are interesting and the tactical decisions made by each side show how close races can be won or lost.

The New York Times Article