Days after New York Assemblyman Bill Nojay shot and killed himself at his family's cemetery plot, he won the Republican primary to hold onto his seat on Tuesday.
Nojay, a gun-rights activist and Donald Trump advocate, was facing a fraud trial in Cambodia, CBS News reported, over accusations he had bilked an investor in a rice exporting business out of more than $1 million.
Nojay's win over challenger Richard Milne now gives local GOP leaders in the right-leaning district 10 days to choose a candidate to take on Democrat Barbara Baer in November.
GOP leaders encouraged voters to choose Nojay even after his death. Milne was critical of GOP leaders who used robocalls and other means to promote Nojay's candidacy after his death.
"They really did some things in the past few days that were in poor taste, in my opinion, to sway the vote," he said.
"I really don't know what to say. It's such an unusual situation," Milne told The Associated Press. "I really believe we would have fared better with Mr. Nojay still alive."
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