Former State Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno could be facing a new corruption trial.

The 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals threw out Bruno's 2009 fraud conviction Wednesday.

The Republican had originally been accused of abusing his power by accepting millions of dollars in contracts from companies that worked with the state.

The case will return to a lower court, where prosecutors can decide whether he should be retried with a different theory of criminal liability.

In its ruling, the federal appeals court noted, “there is sufficient evidence of a quid pro quo for a reasonable jury to convict Bruno.”