Hudson Valley congressional races on Nov. 6 ballot

Four incumbent members of Congress representing parts of the Hudson Valley face six challengers in Tuesday's elections as Republicans and Democrats battle for control of the House of Representatives.

Because New York's population grew more slowly than other states, it's losing two of its 29 congressional districts. In the Hudson Valley, the most visible change to the political landscape is the elimination of the 22nd District, represented by Rep. Maurice Hinchey (D-Hurley), which stretched up to the Southern Tier.

The elimination of the district, approved by a federal three-judge panel in March, means that the region has one less vote in Congress come January.

The changes have vastly expanded the region's remaining districts and shaken up the political landscape.

Topping the list of congressional races in the region is the nationally watched 18th District matchup between Rep. Nan Hayworth (R-Bedford) and Democrat Sean Patrick Maloney, a former top aide to President Bill Clinton.

Maloney, 46, is a Manhattan attorney who worked as a top aide to Clinton and former Govs. Eliot Spitzer and David Paterson. He ran unsuccessfully in a 2006 primary for attorney general. On the campaign trail, he focused on education and job creation. He has been critical of Hayworth's conservative positions on health care and social issues.

Although Hayworth's campaign has labeled Maloney a "carpetbagger" -- charging he moved into the sprawling district to run for the congressional office, he has portrayed the freshman lawmaker as a Tea Party radical who has ignored her constituents while indulging herself in partisan bickering in Washington. Both have attacked each other in TV ads and mailers.

Besides a flood of outside money from Democratic and Republican super PACs, both campaigns have been raising big money in the high-stakes race. Hayworth has raised $2.73 million as of Sept. 30, including $585,197 in the most recent quarter, Federal Election Commission filings show. Maloney's campaign has raised nearly $1.6 million to date.

A recent Siena College poll indicated that Hayworth's double-digit lead over Maloney among likely voters in the district has narrowed and now stands at 49 to 42 percent. A Siena poll in September had given Hayworth a 13-point lead.

The new 18th Congressional District includes parts of Westchester, Orange, Putnam and Dutchess counties.

In the 17th Congressional District, veteran Rep. Nita Lowey (D-Harrison) faces a challenge from Joe Carvin, a Republican and Rye town supervisor, and Frank Morganthaler, a retired FDNY lieutenant running on an independent line.

Carvin, 58, is hedge fund manager -- he describes himself as fluent in five languages -- who has focused mostly on bread-and-butter economic concerns such as job creation, government spending and the national debt. He lives in Rye with his wife and two daughters.

Morganthaler, 64, is a retired Marine corporal who fought in the Vietnam War. Morganthaler lives in Hawthorne with his wife and daughter and works as a private investigator and emergency management consultant in New York City.

The new 17th Congressional District includes most of Rockland and parts of southern Westchester County.

In the newly reconfigured 16th Congressional District, veteran Rep. Eliot Engel (D-Bronx) faces a challenge from Republican Joseph McLaughlin and Green Party candidate Joseph P. Diferia.

Diferia, 51, is a Yonkers native who graduated from the College of New Rochelle and earned a master's degree in public administration from Walden University. He has taught government and politics in colleges throughout New York.

The new 16th District includes a large section of southern Westchester County and the Bronx.

In the new 19th Congressional District, which includes parts of Ulster, Broome, Delaware, Sullivan and Otsego counties, incumbent Rep. Chris Gibson (R-Kinderhook) faces a challenge from Democrat Julian Schreibman, a Kingston attorney.

Schreibman, 39, is a former prosecutor, counsel for the Central Intelligence Agency and past chairman of the Ulster County Democratic Committee. He lives in Stone Ridge with his wife.

On the campaign, Schreibman has attacked Gibson for voting for Wisconsin Congressman and vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan's Medicare plan. Gibson has distanced himself from it by talking of a "bipartisan solution" for Medicare.

Both candidates have flooded the airways with attack ads. Gibson has spent $1.7 million to date, while Schreibman has spent about $1.1 million, according to the latest filings with the Federal Election Commission. Republican and Democratic super PACs also have spent millions on TV ads. A recent Siena College poll found Gibson leading Schreibman by 5 points.