Rep. Chris Collins, R-N.Y., won re-election on Tuesday, despite being indicted on felony insider trading charges.
Collins will serve New York’s 27th Congressional District, which covers Buffalo, for a fourth term after Democratic challenger Nathan McMurray conceded Tuesday night.
“We’re going to come up a little short tonight,” McMurray said, according to the Buffalo News.
Collins had 49.5 percent of the vote late Tuesday with 99 percent of precincts reporting, per the Associated Press.
Collins was charged in August following phone calls he made to his son Cameron Collins in 2017 to tell him that Innate Immunotherapeutics Limited, of which he is the largest shareholder, had experienced a failed drug trial. Federal prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York allege Cameron Collins used the information to make timely trades and tipped off others to do the same. The trades allowed Cameron Collins to avoid $786,000 in losses, the indictment stated.
Chris Collins has pleaded not guilty, dismissing the charges as “meritless.” He is also expected to be investigated by the House Ethics Committee after the criminal case against him concludes.
Collin’s victory comes following a temporary suspension of his campaign for about a month amid the controversy. He restarted his efforts in September when it became evident his name would have to stay on the ballot.
