GOP Fields Candidates Across the County
By Dan Murphy
The Grand Old Party in Westchester County ain’t dead yet. That is the message republicans are proclaiming as new candidates step up and challenge democrats in the northern and southern parts of the county. In the wake of the Blue Wave that swept Westchester in 2016 and 2017, several new, fresh faces have stepped forward to talk about taxes, affordability, and present a different narrative to the progressive ideals proclaimed by many democrats in Westchester and New York State.
In the Town of Yorktown, Longtime political operative Matthew Slater has declared his candidacy to become the next Yorktown town supervisor. Yorktown, which was a republican stronghold for decades, recently elected its first democratic supervisor in more than a generation, with the success of Ilan Gilbert in 2017.
Slater is not new to government, having served as chief of staff for former State Sen. Terrence Murphy, as well as having served as mid-Hudson regional director for the New York State Assembly Minority Conference. Slater served as chairman of the Yorktown GOP committee until stepping down to run for supervisor.
“People that have lived here all of their lives and people that just moved in say the same thing, Yorktown is just too expensive,” he said. “Decades of poor planning and bureaucratic hurdles have created a system where expenses continue to outpace revenue and nothing is done to ease our residential tax burden.”
Slater has been endorsed by Murphy, his former boss. “There are a lot of unsung heroes in public service and to have Matt step up from behind the scenes will be a huge win for the people of Yorktown,” said Murphy.
State Assemblyman Kevin Byrne also endorsed Slater, saying: “In Yorktown alone, he helped us alienate parkland to preserve a historic cemetery, designate nearly two dozen local lakes including Mohegan Lake, Sparkle Lake and Junior Lake – as inland waterways for the purposes of waterfront revitalization and environmental remediation, as well as rename two of Yorktown’s state roads for fallen warriors of the community.”
Slater, 33, and his wife, Kellie, have a 3-year-old son. He is a 2004 graduate of Yorktown High School, received his undergraduate degree from St. Anselm College, and earned his Master of Public Administration from Marist College.
In New Rochelle, longtime democratic Mayor Noam Bramson will face a challenge as he seeks a fourth term this November.
Peggy Godfrey writes: “There is no doubt the local elections for New Rochelle this year promise to be exciting. At the Feb. 20, meeting of the New Rochelle Republican City Committee, candidates for New Rochelle mayor and council districts were selected, starting with Brendon Conroy is their candidate to run for mayor.
“The current New Rochelle mayor, Democratic Mayor Noam Bramson, has already served for three terms. Conroy is the son of former Councilwoman Cathy Conroy, and is also related to Malcolm Wilson. In accepting his nomination, Conroy said he was ‘excited to run’ and asked for everyone’s help. Dennis Starr, in his seconding nomination speech, echoed the sentiments of the district leaders who felt it was ‘time for a change.’
“City Leader Rosemary McLaughlin encouraged district leaders to walk with the candidates selected. Some districts have already designated their candidate for council for this year’s election. Councilmen Al Tarantno and Lou Trangucci will be running again for re-election.” (End of Godfrey story.)
Additional background on the upcoming Bramson-Conroy race: Conroy is the grandson of former New York republican Gov. Malcolm Wilson, and as Godfrey writes above, his mother and Gov. Wilson’s daughter was a New Rochelle city councilwoman until she was defeated by a young democratic seeking his first elected office.
His name was Noam Bramson, who defeated Conroy and, in effect, ended the Wilson family dynasty in Westchester and New York State. Now the grandson of Gov. Wilson is seeking to settle the political score with Mayor Bramson, and score what can only be described as a major political upset if he wins back the mayor’s office for republicans in New Rochelle.
Four years ago, Bramson did not have a republican opponent, but independent candidate James O’Toole got 41 percent of the vote, which surprised many in the city that a non-republican could receive that many votes. Others believed that O’Toole’s vote total was the high-water mark for any democratic opponent, and Bramson – like any long-serving mayor – had his number of detractors.
In Yonkers, republican Mario De Giorgio was nominated by Yonkers Republicans at their convention held last weekend. De Giorgio, a former democrat who ran for City Council as a democrat eight years ago, is a local businessman who is active in the Italian-American community in the city and county.
Some noted that Yonkers republicans had several candidates to choose from for mayor, which was a pleasant surprise for many who did not want republicans to leave the line for Yonkers mayor empty and for those who wanted Mayor Mike Spano to face an opponent and not an empty chair during the debate this fall.
Some moderate democrats in the county reminded this reporter that: “Republicans still have a long way to go to get back to the glory days before the blue wave. Remember, it was just one year ago when republicans did not put up a candidate against Sen. Shelley Mayer after she beat Julie Killian in the special election. That seat was drawn for a republican and they never won it. Latimer won it three times before Shelley. But at least they are putting up a fight and fielding candidates. That is what democracy is all about.”
This November, Westchester voters will also elect all 17 seats on the County Board of Legislators. Democrats now hold a 13-4 advantage. Republican Chairman Doug Colety said at a recent county GOP dinner that republicans will field candidates in most every one of the 17 races.
One name that is rumored to return is former County Legislator Sheila Marcotte, who was able to win her county legislative seat in the 10th district, which includes Eastchester, Tuckahoe and parts of New Rochelle, three times before losing to democrat County legislator Damon Maher in 2017 during the blue wave.
Marcotte remains one of the republicans’ top candidates in the Eastchester area, which remains one of the remaining republican parts of Westchester. The Village of Tuckahoe, located in the Town of Eastchester, may tell us early if republicans can push back on the blue wave.
Tuckahoe voters will go to the polls March xx to elect a mayor and two village trustees, and with the retirement of republican Mayor Steve Ecklond, democrats see an opportunity to take over Village Hall, which has had a republican mayor for decades.
Republican Tuckahoe Trustee Greg Luisi is running for mayor, and Gina Lee and Umberto Baldassarra are running for trustee seats. Luisi has served for eight years as trustee and is a strong candidate for mayor and for republicans to hold the majority on the Village Board.
Tuckahoe democrats have nominated former Mayor John Fitzpatrick to run for mayor. Fitzpatrick, a well-known name and one of very few democratic mayors elected in the village, is joined by democratic trustee candidates Renee Howell and Harmeet Goindi.
