Cuomo and Bloomberg Concerned Over Plight of 2 Senators Who Backed Gay Marriage ALBANY - Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg have had their differences. But on Wednesday, 130 miles apart, they rued the same development: two Republican primaries last week in which challengers may have defeated state senators who voted for same-sex marriage. The elections were so close that the results will not be known for days - both depend on counts of absentee ballots. But Mr. Cuomo and Mr. Bloomberg, both strong supporters of same-sex marriage who vowed to assist the Republicans, each expressed unhappiness at the tight elections. In Albany, the governor, a Democrat, acknowledged to reporters that he would feel "sad" if the senators lost. In Manhattan, the mayor, an independent, said of efforts to help the lawmakers, "In retrospect, maybe all of us could have done more." Mr. Cuomo and Mr. Bloomberg both lobbied to win Republican votes for same-sex marriage last year - Mr. Cuomo through one-on-one meetings in the governor's office, Mr. Bloomberg with multiple trips to the State Capitol. Most Republicans voted against same-sex marriage, but four in the Senate backed it. Their votes allowed the marriage measure to become law. The state's Conservative Party and other opponents of same-sex marriage vowed revenge; gay-rights groups promised support. Among the four Republican senators who ultimately voted for the Marriage Equality Act last year, one, Senator James S. Alesi of Monroe County, decided not to seek re-election, and a second, Senator Mark J. Grisanti of Buffalo, won his primary last Thursday. But the two others - Senators Roy J. McDonald of Saratoga County and Stephen M. Saland of Poughkeepsie - will learn their fates only after the absentee ballots are counted. Mr. Saland emerged from the election narrowly ahead of his opponent, Neil A. Di Carlo. Mr. McDonald trailed his challenger, Kathleen A. Marchione, the Saratoga County clerk, by a narrow margin. Both counties in the Saland-Di Carlo race will begin counting ballots on Thursday; two counties in the McDonald-Marchione race will also begin on Thursday, while two others will start on Monday. Opponents of same-sex marriage have pointed to the close races as evidence that Republican voters will not tolerate their party's officeholders voting to support allowing gay men and lesbians to wed. The National Organization for Marriage, for example, sent a fund-raising e-mail on Wednesday that cited the New York primaries. The organization's president, Brian S. Brown, said he had no sympathy for disappointed same-sex marriage supporters like the governor and mayor. "Both Cuomo and Bloomberg, just a few short months ago, didn't think voting for gay marriage would have any effect," Mr. Brown said in an interview. We said all along it would have an effect, and it has. This is what elections are about. Mr. Cuomo, speaking at a news conference at the Capitol, conceded that the tough primary challenges against Mr. McDonald and Mr. Saland could be attributed to their support of same-sex marriage, which he described as "an act of political courage." Mr. Cuomo added that before they cast their votes last year, both men discussed with him the possibility that they could face primary challenges, but were not deterred. The governor said that it was "unfortunate" that the political repercussions feared by the senators had come true, and that it "would be disappointing" if they lost their seats. "I don't believe we elect officials to always agree with us," Mr. Cuomo said. We elect officials to use their best judgment and to be people of character and integrity, and I think this vote, which was a difficult vote, showed character and integrity. I hope it works out for both gentlemen. They're in the middle of recounts now, and I hope it works out - I hope they get re-elected. Mr. Cuomo did not play a visible role in the primary campaigns, and he said Wednesday that his presence in the race would not have been helpful for the two senators. "If you're voting against them because of marriage equality, my support is not going to help," he said. And you could argue that my support may have actually been a negative in that context, because if it was about marriage equality, I would have been a great reminder of the marriage-equality vote, and I would have gone out of my way to speak about the marriage-equality vote, frankly. Mr. Bloomberg donated $10,300 apiece to the four Republican senators who supported the marriage bill; he was also a host of a high-dollar fund-raiser last year that benefited them. He told reporters on Wednesday that he had "an enormous amount of respect" for the men. "No matter what happens in the election," Mr. Bloomberg said, "they're going to have the satisfaction of knowing for the rest of their life they stood up and voted their conscience, and they did it in a world where that's harder to do today maybe than it's been in a long time." He added: "I keep saying, there's got to be something more important than doing what's right for your political career. I think you've got to do what's right for humanity, and for the country, and, in my case, for the city, and I think these four Republicans did. Thomas Kaplan reported from Albany, and Michael M. Grynbaum from New York.