Paul Kirby reports in the Daily Freeman that Assemblyperson Chris Tague is not be running for the 51st Senate District seat left open by the retirement of Republican James Seward. Tague, a Republican from Schoharie, currently represents the 102nd Assembly District. “After much consideration and reflection with my wife, family and close friends, I have decided not to pursue a run for the state Senate,” said Tague in a prepared statement. “... I am incredibly honored and humbled to have been approached and encouraged by so [by] many respected members of our region to consider succeeding a legend like Sen. Seward.” His retirement comes during a recurring battle with bladder cancer. No Republicans have yet announce a campaign for the seat, after Seward's recent announcement. Democrats have one candidate so far, Jim Barber, a farmer from Middleburgh, is running in the district that stretches from Ulster County to Tompkins County, and to Herkimer County. Tague, in the Assembly, represents all of Greene and Schoharie counties; parts of Otsego, Delaware, and Albany counties; and the towns of Saugerties in Ulster County and Stockport and Stuyvesant in Columbia County. Read the full story in the Daily Freeman.