By Dan Murphy
WESTCHESTER, NY — As former Westchester County Executive Robert Astorino is eagerly entering the private sector and considering all of his options for future employment, including three recent appearances on CNN analyzing the news from Washington and President Donald Trump, some of his recently defeated allies on the County Board of Legislators and his former employees in his county executive’s office landed jobs at the Board of Elections.
Many years ago, the assumed risk with taking a political job with an elected official was that when your candidate leaves office, your job goes with them. Today, not only in the county office building in White Plains, but in Yonkers City Hall and many other town halls across the county, departing politicians often like to quietly find work for their loyal assistants and press secretaries.
Journal News reporter Mark Lungariello broke the story about several former members of the County Board of Legislators who lost their re-election bids last November but got jobs at the Board of Elections on Jan. 2. Republicans Sheila Marcotte and Francis Corcoran both got $93,000-a-year jobs as program administrators at the BOE. Marcotte is a rising star in the dwindling Westchester Republican Party and was more than qualified in her role as BOL budget chairperson during her six years representing Eastchester and New Rochelle. Corcoran served one two-year term on the BOL.
Both Marcotte and Corcoran initially voted “no” on the county budget, which raised property taxes by 2 percent, but after the budget was vetoed by Astorino, they joined with BOL Democrats to override Astorino’s veto.
Some of the other hires at the Board of Elections have some county officials scratching their heads. Those hires at the BOE include Barbara Tubiolo, wife of Yonkers Republican Chairman Justin Tubiolo and mother of County Legislator David Tubiolo, who got a $112,000-a-year job as director of technical support service at the BOE after serving in Astorino’s county executive’s office. Former Astorino employees TJ McCormack and John Cerino also landed on their feet, with nice jobs at the Board of Elections.
What makes the hirings even more curious is the fact that the new positions were created at the BOE as a result of the 2018 budget negotiated in the final days of 2017, when Astorino, Marcotte and Corcoran were all leaving office. As one county employee told us, “Whenever new jobs are created at the BOE, it’s an even split for Democrats and Republicans. They divide it up evenly, so, yes, a lot of Republicans landed on their feet, but there’s also seven new jobs for Democrats at the BOE that Reggie (BOE Democratic Commissioner Reginald LaFayette) can hand out.
“The new jobs at the BOE for Republicans were ‘negotiated’ by Rob (Astorino) and Doug (Coley, Republican commissioner for the Board of Elections). Doug wanted to take care of some loyal Republicans who will help the party moving forward, like Barbara (Tubiolo) and JC (John Cerino of the Young Republicans), and Rob wanted to take care of some of his people,” said the same county insider. Also included in the Republican flotilla over to the BOE was a former assistant to Yorktown Supervisor Michael Grace, who lost his re-election last November.
“When Sheila was taking such a hard line stance as budget chair, keeping tax increases down and cutting every pencil and budget line she can, for her to take a patronage job at the Board of Elections is a little odd,” said another member of county government. “And not everyone was taken care of. There are some in Astorino’s administration who are still looking for a place to land. The scramble is on because, in all likelihood, there will never be another Republican County executive or Republican majority on the BOL ever again.”
Tubiolo denied any role in the hiring of his mother. He voted for the budget and the 2 percent property tax levy increase, and for the override of Astorino’s veto. “The prospect of my mother’s future employment with Westchester County was never a consideration in how I voted,” he said.
Last month, former Astorino administration officials Ned McCormack and Eileen Mildenberger were hired by the Mount Vernon Industrial Development Agency. Mildenberger, who served as director of the Westchester County Office of Economic Development, was named the Mt. Vernon IDA’s new executive director; McCormack, who served as Astorino’s communications director, will be the Mt. Vernon IDA’s communications director, a newly established position. Each will earn $135,000 per year.
The Democratic choices for the new jobs at the Board of Elections will be printed as soon as we can find out who they are.
