New York held its primary Thursday to determine the Republican and Democratic nominees for the midterm elections in November.

Cynthia Nixon’s campaign garnered national attention after she obtained enough petition signatures to force a primary against Governor Andrew Cuomo. The actress-turned-politician looked to pull of a shocking primary upset, but she was unable to defeat Cuomo, who won with 975,552 votes.

However, turnout was higher than expected, as Nixon lost with 511,585 votes, which is significantly more than the 361,380 votes Cuomo won with in the 2014 primary.

The Pace community had a close eye on the Democratic primary for state senator in the 40th district, which covers parts of Dutchess, Putnam, and Westchester Counties, including Pleasantville.

Pete Harckham, who visited Pace’s Political Science Association on Monday, pulled off a victory against Robert Kesten, and will now run against incumbent senator Terrence Murphy.

“To all voters who are tired of the corruption and partisan gridlock, who feel that both Washington and Albany are not listening, I hear you and I will fight for you,” Harckham said on Thursday. “I will fight for Hudson Valley values, not Trump values.”

During his visit to Pace earlier this week, Harckham explained how he will help Pace and other educational institutions.

“Education is really the most important economic investment we can make because the quality of our education then reflected by the quality of our work,” he said. “The senate will help fund projects. So if Pace, for example, needs a new science lab, the state is critically important in partnering to help that get build. The state’s relationship with universities are vital to keep and we need to keep that alive in the senate.”

In another election that impacted Westchester, four-term NYS senator Jeff Klein was defeated by first-time candidate Alessandra Biaggi in a surprising upset for the Democratic nomination in the 34th District.

Klein was the leader of the Independent Democratic Conference (IDC), a group of democratic NYS senators that caucused separately from other Democrats and often with Republicans instead. Although the IDC dissolved in April, democratic voters took note of its members, since six of the eight former members were voted out of office Thursday evening.

In a victory for establishment democrats, incumbent lieutenant governor Kathy Hochul held off her opponent Jumaane Williams in a closer-than-expected race.

Sticking with the statewide races, New York City public advocate Letitia James won a four-way race for the democratic nomination for NYS attorney general. If James, who was endorsed by Cuomo, wins in November, she will be the first black woman to hold the title.

Finally, in Mt. Pleasant, Mark A. Rubeo Jr. won the republican nomination for Town Justice with just 571 votes. There were no democratic runners.

The midterms will be held on November 7, and students can look to Pace’s Center for Community Action and Research (CCAR) for registration information, and further insight on voting.