1980Final results
1980 election for New York Senate District 51
New York State Senate · New York
William T. Smith (R) won with 60.7% of the vote, defeating Ruth V. Siegel (D) by 23.0 points.
William T. SmithRepublican · winner · incumbent
60.7%63,793
Ruth V. SiegelDemocrat
37.6%39,592
Steven W. ChaneyRight to Life
1.7%1,787
105,172 votes
Source: Harvard Dataverse / Carl KlarnerUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:29 AM ET
The seat over time
D − R margin in this seat's races around 1980
Races before and after
Source: Harvard Dataverse / Carl KlarnerUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:29 AM ET