(CNSNews.com) – The special election victory Democrats scored in New York’s District 26 on Tuesday is not the repudiation of Rep. Paul Ryan’s (R-Wis.) Medicare reform plan that top Democrats are claiming it is. Kathy Hochul, the Democratic victor, only garnered 47 percent of the vote.

“Kathy Hochul’s victory tonight is a tribute to Democrats’ commitment to preserve and strengthen Medicare, create jobs, and grow our economy. And it sends a clear message that will echo nationwide: Republicans will be held accountable for their vote to end Medicare,” House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said in a statement on Tuesday.

House Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chair Steve Israel (D-N.Y.) said Hochul’s victory showed that the public had rejected Ryan’s Medicare reforms, which were passed by the GOP-controlled House on a party-line vote...