A third candidate for the Third Judicial District

FISHER

While much has been made of who will get the Democratic Party nomination for the one open seat on the Supreme Court, a Republican is poised to get her party’s nomination later this week.

Lisa M. Fisher, 47, a Greene County resident and Kingston attorney, is expected to be the GOP’s pick and she will run against whoever comes out on top in the ongoing battle between Family Court Judge Margaret “Peggy” Walsh and county Legislator Justin Corcoran. The well-documented intraparty delegate fight will come to a conclusion one way or another when the party’s Judicial Nominating Convention takes place on Friday.

The Republicans also meet on Friday and the Conservative Party, which is expected to endorse Fisher, on Saturday.

WALSH

The way it works is that delegates are picked by party bosses from the seven counties that make up the Third Judicial District. Those delegates are elected by voters and sent to a Judicial Nominating Convention where they vote for what is usually an agreed upon candidate. Rare is it when there are primaries for delegates.   

Delegates for Walsh, who cannot run for Supreme Court and Family Court at the same time, won 17 of 30 primaries so 17 from Albany County will likely cast their votes for Walsh and 13 will likely vote for Cocoran at the convention. It’s unclear how delegates from the other counties will vote.

CORCORAN

One criticism of Cocoran – in addition to the fact he is a man – is that he is part of the old line Democrats whereas Walsh is favored by the “progressive” Democrats headed up by Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan. One criticism of Walsh is she already has the party’s nomination for a re-election bid for Family Court.  

Fisher has been in private practice for 17 years and has served as an assistant public defender for the Ulster County Public Defender’s Office, staff attorney for the Ulster County Department of Social Services, and Court attorney for Hon. Edward T. Feeney, Kingston City Court. 

A contested judicial race for the Third District is a recent phenomenon. For years, political party bosses for the Democrats and Republicans would swap endorsements to avoid a costly, seven-county race that depletes limited resources with little political return in the way of jobs.

The Third Judicial District consists of Albany, Ulster, Rensselaer, Greene, Columbia, Sullivan and Schoharie counties. The seat that carries a 14-year-term opened up when Judge Joseph Teresi, of Albany County, retired.

McCoy: Clyne will step down as party chair and BOE commissioner



MCCOY

Albany County Executive Dan McCoy, appearing on Talk 1300 Saturday, said Matt Clyne has decided to step down as Democratic Party chairman and from his post as Board of Elections commissioner.

Stepping down as chair - an unpaid, largely thankless job - comes as no surprise after he got trounced in his re-election bid to a committee seat on Primary Day and likely wouldn't win re-election anyway. But as BOE commissioner he earned $88,000 and the spot is filled by Democrats on the Legislature.

Clyne could not immediately be reached for comment.

McCoy would not say who he would like to see as the next county chair or take over as the party’s representative at the Board of Elections. Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan, who has called for Clyne’s ouster and heads up the “progressive” faction of Democrats, could not be reached for comment.

SHEEHAN

The intraparty rift between the old line Democrats, of which Clyne is a part and McCoy is tied into, and the progressive Democrats came to a head when Clyne tried to bounce off the ballot a slate of judicial delegates in an effort to ensure the Supreme Court nomination went to Legislator Justin Cocoran.

The strategy failed, the courts put the ousted slate of delegates back on the ballot and, according to the Times Union, won at least 17 of the 30 primaries. Those delegates will likely back Albany County Family Court Judge Margaret “Peggy” Walsh for Supreme Court at the judicial nominating convention later this month.

Walsh is also running for re-election to her spot on Family Court. It seems to contradict one of the biggest grips Sheehan and the “progressive” faction of Democrats have is that not enough people – read that “their people” – were benefitting from party controlled jobs.

CLYNE

Walsh cannot wear both robes at the same time, so should she get the nod at the judicial nominating convention the Democrats will hold on Sept. 19, she may have to drop out of the Family Court race and allow the committee to fill vacancies to fill the slot. Petitions for the three-person committee were circulated in June along with other nominating petitions.

The organizational meeting, where the party will pick Clyne’s replacement, will occur before the end of the month.

The county committee won’t have the choice of choosing Clyne, but who they do pick could swing towards the “progressive” Democrats or the old guard. Some names bantered about include Common Council President Carolynn McLaughlin, the party’s secretary, who the TU described as not fitting in nicely with either faction and County Legislature Noelle Kinsch, the wife of city Treasurer Darius Shahinfar.

Who is picked for Family Court Judge to replace Walsh is not clear at this time. As is who will replace Clyne at the Board of Elections.