The 2014 Election and How It Affects MMA in New York

NEW YORK

There was an election in New York yesterday, which means that the potential for shakeups in government and the shifting of political winds in regards to MMA was at its highest. So now that the votes have been tallied and the dust has settled, who's in and who's out? Here's a scorecard for you:

• Andrew Cuomo is still the governor. This is both good and bad - it's good because Zuffa has contributed to his campaigns and he's proven to be open to the idea of having sanctioned MMA in New York; it's bad because he refuses to get behind the sport fully and include it as a provision in the annual budget.
• Joseph Griffo is still a senator. If you'll recall, Senator Griffo pushed for this bill that would put the oversight of amateur MMA in the hands of the athletic commission. What does this mean for amateur MMA in the 2014-2015 session? It's too soon to tell, but if Senator Griffo is still around, so too could the bill be, and maybe this year it becomes law.
• Liz Krueger is still a senator. She's been a pretty vocal opponent of the sport here, but that hasn't stopped the MMA bill from passing through the Senate every year.
• Of the 60 supporters of MMA in the Assembly, none were voted out. However, three did retire. In terms of those who've been very much against the sport, all have kept their Assembly seats except for one Assemblyman who retired.

At the end of the day, all of this legislative shuffling (or lack thereof) points to what could be the "same old, same old" for the legislative fight to get ban lifted. We'll see, though. A favorable verdict in the Zuffa vs. New York lawsuit, which could come any day, could force the issue in a big way.