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| GORDON |
Guess I better get caught up on
what is turning out to be a wild year in the City of Troy.
-As expected, Councilman Jim
Gordon, R-District 1, got the GOP Selection Committee’s nod. That
recommendation now goes to the full committee, which is also expected to
approve his nomination. If recent history is any indication, he will also have
the Conservative and Independence Party lines.
-The Working Families Party is holding
a press conference Monday (May 4) to announce at least a partial slate of
candidates. As expected Council President Rodney Wiltshire, D-At Large, will
head up the ticket. Other incumbents include, as expected, Democrats Anastasia
Robertson in District 2 and Bob Doherty in District 4.
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| WILTSHIRE |
Also slated to speak at the press
conference at the top of The Approach is Peggy Kownack, A Democrat running for
an At Large seat. Anasha Cummings, who had one of the corniest press
conferences in recent memory to announce his bid for an At Large seat, is not
listed as a speaker but he was out of town and is expected to run with WFP
support.
Others in this year’s lineup
include District 1 candidate Jessica Ashley, who served on the Council in the
early 2000s and who ran in 2013 on the Green Party line, and District 5
candidate David Bissember.
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| KOWNACK |
The WFP is going to be a major
player. If the status quo holds true there will be a three-way primary for the
all-powerful Democratic Party line with Patrick Madden getting the party proper
support (that of Rensselaer County Chairman Tom Wade and company) and newcomer
Ernest Everett also running.
That means even if Wiltshire loses
the primary he will still be the WFP candidate on the general election ballot in
November. If Wiltshire wins the primary, however, it could be the end of the
Democratic Party hierarchy as we know it.
-The same could apply for the GOP
with Carmella Mantello all but announcing her candidacy for mayor. She said she
is starting her own line – Keep Term Limits in Place – so if she loses to
Gordon in the primary she will be on the ballot. If she beats Gordon, he will
still have the I and C lines and still be on the ballot.
-While it doesn’t seem likely any
candidate would wage a serious run on the I or C minor party lines the WFP can
and have rallied the troops and could use Wiltshire’s campaign to make their
every increasing influence all the more significant.
-The Wade Democrats will likely not
endorse Doherty in 4 or Robertson in 2 and it’s still unclear who they have to
run for those seats.
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| DOHERTY |
-Incumbent At Large Councilwomen
Lynn Kopka and Erin Sullivan-Teta – both Wade Dems – have not announced their
intentions but it would be surprising if they don’t run again. Especially given
this year’s wild dynamics and the fact they are loyal to a party that needs
them.
-Former Councilman Mark McGrath
announced he is running for his old seat in District 2 and the enrolled
Conservative will get the Wilson Pakula from the GOP. It’s not clear if the
Wade Dems will challenge Robertson or not.
-Gordon can’t run for his District
seat and for mayor and the neither Wade Dems, the Wiltshire Dems nor the GOP
have not announced a candidate in District 1.
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| KOPKA |
-Republican Dean Bodnar is running
for his fourth and final term and the Dems – both Wade and Wiltshire camps – haven’t
said anything about any opposition at this point in time.
-The Wade Dems will likely find
someone to run against Doherty in 4.
-The GOP will find someone to run
in 5 and the Wade Dems might too.
-District 6 is wide open.
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| MADDEN |
-One more thing … word is Madden
might be getting cold feet and who can blame him. Politics has always been
called a “blood sport” in Rensselaer County and this year the metaphor could
cross the line into the literal. And, the surviving candidates will have to
deal with a multi-million deficit, six unions without contracts, likely
indictments from a grand jury and that’s including all the other stuff like a
crumbling infrastructure, racial tension, crime, arsonists, an eclectic electorate
with a host of different needs --- and as sure summer is here now winter will
come back and some pipes will surely freeze.
The smartest guy of the whole lot
is Mayor Lou Rosamilia who opted to not run again.
