Dan Zuckerman is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media Democrat Lee Palmateer has defeated Republican Ed Bloomer in the special Greene County Legislature District 3 race to represent Athens, following a count of absentee ballots and affidavits at the county Board of Elections, Wed., Nov. 15. Palmateer prevailed with a final tally of 629 to 608. Palmateer will serve out the final year of the late Gene Hatton’s three-year term. Hatton died in August, and Mary Hatton was appointed to serve in his place until January 1. “I’m looking forward to joining the other members of the legislature and making the tough decisions that need to be made,” Palmateer said. Bloomer said despite the loss, he enjoyed campaigning and would not hesitate to run again. “It was an experience that I’m glad I had,” Bloomer said. “It was a lot more positive than I was expecting.” Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.