William Ballard "Sam" Hoyt III (born January 9, 1962) is an American politician from New York. A Democrat, Hoyt is an economic development professional and was a member of the New York State Assembly from 1992 to 2011. He represented the 144th Assembly district, consisting of part of Buffalo, New York, and all of Grand Island, New York, from 1992 to 2011. Hoyt was first elected to succeed his late father, William Hoyt. He resigned from office in 2011 after a sexual harassment suit and he previously was the subject of an ethics investigation in 2008 concerning a two-year sexual relationship with a 23-year-old assembly intern, named Lori Gradwell. He was then appointed to an economic development position as Regional President of the Empire State Development Corporation in New York State Governor Andrew M. Cuomo's administration. He was also Interim Chairman of the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corporation, and Vice Chairman of the Buffalo and Fort Erie Public Bridge Authority. Hoyt is founder and president of Upstate Strategic Advisors LLC, a full-service PR, lobbying, and government relations firm based in Buffalo, NY Early life and education Hoyt grew up on Buffalo's west side and attended area schools, graduating from The Park School of Buffalo, and receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Buffalo State College in 1992. He also attended Ohio Wesleyan University. Background Prior to entering elected office, Hoyt served as Western New York regional director for U.S. Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, and was marketing and promotions director for the Buffalo Bisons minor league baseball team. He represented the 144th Assembly District, encompassing part of Buffalo, New York, and all of Grand Island, New York from 1992 to 2011. New York State Assembly career Elections Hoyt was first elected in a 1992 special election following the death of his father, William B. Hoyt, who held the office prior to him. From 1992 to 2010, Hoyt won all elections for his assembly seat with voting percentages between 51% to 79% in his favor. Selected electoral history Hoyt's complete electoral history has been tracked, online, at Our Campaigns, and a portion of it is reflected here. |- There were also 31 write-in votes in this election, accounting for 0.10%. Hoyt also received votes on both the Independent and Working Family lines in this election. |- Hoyt also ran on the Liberal ticket in this election. Duties In the