(Photo: YouTube)

State Senator Kevin Parker, sans-Mindy Meyer, debated an empty chair.

Counting the pre-general reports and 48-hour filing notices, Democrat Mark Murphy out-raised incumbent Michael Grimm roughly $173,000 to $87,000. Governor Andrew Cuomo is currently campaigning and endorsing across the state, will he send anything Mr. Murphy's way? His endorsements so far have gone to candidates polling stronger than Mr. Murphy has been.

Here's one thing favoring Mr. Grimm, at least. His ex-father-in-law is no longer actively opposing him. In an infamous moment during the 2010 campaign, then-Congressman Mike McMahon sat Mr. Grimm's ex-wife in the front row in a debate in an attempt to rattle him.

Queens Councilman Dan Halloran, who invoked the Holocaust to attack the city's soda cup restrictions, saw his congressional campaign receive $2,000 from Pepsico, Inc. Concerned Citizens Fund in his latest filing.

Another Republican congressional candidate, Joe Carvin, initially gave his campaign $1 million dollars. But he has already paid himself back a good portion of it and looks like he's on track to be able to pay himself back much more after his November 6th battle with incumbent Rep. Nita Lowey.

Charlie Rangel weighed in on the Richard Mourdock controversy on MSNBC. “No person's religion is strong enough to tell them that they're going to superimpose their ideas on the entire population," Mr. Rangel said, calling on presidential candidate Mitt Romney to disavow himself from "this type of insane idea."

The Senate GOP's campaign operation photoshopped Democratic Senate candidate George Latimer's head onto Benedict Arnold's body to declare him a traitor on the issue of property taxes. The Senate Democrats, extremely pleased with their "slum lord" attack on Republican candidate Bob Cohen, snarkily responded, “People who own glass slums shouldn’t throw stones."

The Perez Notes aired some City Council redistricting rumors this afternoon, writing, "I also heard a rumor that state Sen. Espaillat and Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez were trying to make a deal with Quinn in return for their support. The deal is that Quinn would push the supposedly independent commission to redraw the map to include District Leader Mark Levine in the 7th CD. The way the maps are currently drawn, he would have to move to run for this seat."

GOP candidate Joseph Hayon criticized both his opponent, Assemblywoman Helene Weinstein, and Republican Majority Leader Dean Skelos over 2011's same sex marriage bill.