http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/05/nyregion/malcolm-smith-defects-joining-dissenting-democrats.html
Mr. Skelos and Mr. Klein said the Senate would adopt new rules that formally recognized the Independent Democratic Conference, which has five members, as a third caucus in the Senate, in addition to the Republicans’ and Democrats’. Mr. Skelos and Mr. Klein would have “joint and equal authority” over the bills that the Senate takes up, committee assignments, appointments and state budget negotiations. They would take turns serving as the temporary president of the Senate, a position defined in the State Constitution, alternating in the position every two weeks.
Haha.
So... New York has three parties now, technically?
New York has at least 5 (Republican, Democratic, Independence, Working Families, Conservative) and I believe as of the elections of 2010 the Greens have joined them. What has happened is that the New York State Senate Democrats (they are all Democrats) have devolved into two blocs who hate each other. They will be facing each other in primaries, not the general. (And they will be facing each other very little; most of the Senators in the IDC are personally popular, but I think most new Democratic Senators will make it a campaign plank to caucus with the mainstream Democrats; those who don't want to do that will probably run as Republicans).
Is the Alaska Senate run like that? With about half the GOP Senators caucusing with the Democrats?
It was, but as of the 2012 elections is no longer.
