Ball Endorses Maloney Over Hayworth, But Not Without Scrutiny
They may both be Republicans in political party affiliation, but last Friday certainly revealed there’s no love lost between congressional candidate Nan Hayworth and current New York State Senator Greg Ball.
Democrat and current House of Representative Sean Patrick Maloney, who is running for a second term in office, announced Friday that Ball was backing his run rather than the candidate from his own party. Shortly following the formal endorsement, the Hayworth campaign shot back with some harsh rhetoric of their own.
In a statement, Ball, who is leaving public life after his current term is up, stated while he and Maloney disagree on numerous issues, he was still compelled to back Maloney because of Maloney’s support for veterans calling him “no stronger ally.” Ball said his work with Maloney resulted in securing $400 million in contracts yearly for wounded veterans.
And then after giving a glowing recommendation to Maloney, Ball, to no surprise, went on to attack Hayworth and said she didn’t provide support for residents after hurricanes shook up the Hudson Valley and didn’t help veterans in need of various things such as housing assistance or PTSD healthcare.
“Let me be frank, unlike Nan who is hopelessly disconnected from real people, Sean gets it, and the man has left no stone unturned for our veterans or his constituents at large,” Ball stated. “When Nan was in office the only thing we could count on was a busy signal or no call back. Sad but true, and frankly its refreshing to have an independent minded Congressman who gets it and picks up the phone, whether you’re a vet or not.”
While Maloney expressed appreciation for the endorsement, noting how the two have worked together regardless of political party, the Hayworth campaign dismissed the endorsement as nothing more than sour grapes from Ball.
NYS Assemblyman Kieran Lalor, in a release sent out by Hayworth’s team, said Ball is only publicly backing Maloney because “Ball was the Republican front-runner for Congress in 2010. He had spent years planning his run for Congress. But, when Nan Hayworth entered the race Ball cut and ran rather than face a tough primary.”
“This endorsement represents nothing more than a petty and jealous politician trying to exact revenge against a woman who scared him out of running for Congress four years ago,” Lalor, a Republican, continued to state.
