A state Senate candidate has been distributing fliers about a Weather Underground bombing that targeted his family 30 years ago in an attempt to win over local voters.

As a part of his strategy to unseat the incumbent Democrat Andrea Stewart Cousins, Republican hopeful John Murtagh decided to get voters? attention by telling them about a terrorist attack in his childhood home.

In 1970, four bombs were set off in the Murtagh residence during the time his father was the presiding judge in a Black Panthers trial.

Murtagh, who has spent several years in Yonkers? City Council, says that experience is one reason why he believes public safety should be a top priority at any level of government.

The campaign for state Senate has been an uphill battle for Murtagh, who is running in the overwhelmingly Democratic 35th District, which includes Yonkers, Greenburg and Mount Pleasant.

Two years ago, constituents voted the 10-term Republican state Senator Nick Spano out of office and elected Andrea Stewart-Cousins in his place. But Murtgah says it was not the right choice.

?From what I've seen, my opponent has gone up to Albany despite campaigning that everything was going to change on day one,? Murtagh says. ?It?s now about day 600 [?] and frankly she went up there and just conformed to the old way of doing things.?

Murtagh criticized his opponent and Gov. David Paterson at a lunch with seniors Thursday for not being more honest about the state's budget troubles.

?They didn't wake up one day and discover a budget crisis,? he says. ?They just woke up one day and decided to tell us about it.?