William Tecumseh Sherman.
It was Uncle Billy (as his troops called Sherman) who said “war is hell.” City Democrats know what he meant.
Democrats, assuming they haven’t gone after each other Bull Run-style by then, will meet in unofficial convention on May 27 at the Best Western in Kingston at 6 p.m. Republicans, content to enjoy rival strife, plan to convene the first week in June.
Oh, and Provenzano’s hunch proved true Tuesday morning. Brian Woltman, the city’s purchasing agent and longtime Gallo ally, announced his own campaign for the District 7 seat. In his release, Woltman promised to work in a cooperative spirit and lauded Provenzano and Mike Hein for their leadership. Provenzano was quoted thusly: “I welcome Brian into the race; he is thoughtful, hardworking, and well-qualified for the position. He will be an excellent addition to the legislature.”
Village people
In Saugerties village elections low single-digit turnouts are so common that it has been said that one could fire a cannon through a polling place and not hit anyone. Well, maybe Conservative Party Chairman George Heidcamp, who seems to be everywhere, might get nicked.
Not so in New Paltz where people take their civic duties more seriously.
Last week’s New Paltz village elections produced by my math-challenged calculations a 21 percent turnout of eligible voters. I base this on an extrapolation of registered county voters, about 110,000 against an overall population of about 181,000 (61 percent). At that rate, the village’s 6,818 residents would produce about 4,200 registered voters, of which 871 (21 percent) cast ballots. Though that’s no stampede, it’s pretty good compared to some other places.
In the race for mayor, Tim Rogers prevailed over incumbent Jason West by an unofficial vote of 353 to 204. Running behind West were Sally Rhoads with 177 votes and Amy Cohen with 137. I thought Rhoads and Cohen would have done better. Both had credentials and a colleague reported that on a recent visit to the village, Cohen seemed to be winning the battle of the street signs.
For West, this had to be a stinging rebuke, what with more than three out of four voters casting ballots for his opponents. For Rogers, his clear victory was a shallow mandate. He carried about 17 percent of the voting pool.
In the races for two village trustee seats, Dennis Young and Don Kerr prevailed handsomely over Terry Dungan and Jack Murphy. Apparently, voters were in the mood for change.
West, who’s lost before, seems to be taking his defeat with equanimity. With village hall closed for the time being, might the ex-mayor be seeking higher office this year?
P.S. — Phyllis McCabe and I are getting married this Saturday! Thanks to everyone for their best wishes.
