Candidates for the 43rd Senate district and candidates for family court judge met to debate at a candidate forum presented by the League of Women Voters and moderated by The Spotlight on Wednesday, Oct. 13, at the Malta Community Center.
Saratoga Springs Supervisor Joanne Yepsen (D-Saratoga Springs) and incumbent Roy McDonald (R-Wilton) fielded questions from the audience that focused on issues specific to the 43rd Senate district and New York State in general.
The first thing on constituents’ minds was whether or not either candidate felt the campaign had become too negative. McDonald said he was proud of his career and the way he was running his campaign.
I already made that pledge [to run a clean and ethical campaign]. I only put out one campaign mailer; it very positive you won’t see that from me; that negative, nasty, mean spirited tone, said McDonald. `Whether I win or lose, I’m not going to devalue this job or my family.`
Yepsen said her goal this campaign has been to get information out to the voters.
`Races are competitive and I think this is probably one of the first McDonald has had, so this is an opportunity to educate voters. That’s the goal, to get the facts out there and talk about voting records, what he supported, where he has been and he really needs to come up with more answers to make sure voters have all the information they need to make a good decision on Nov.2,` said Yepsen.
Candidates were asked if they support the Farmworkers Bill of Rights and what they could do to strengthen the farming industry in New York State. Yepsen said she supports farmers, especially in upstate New York, and she did not support the bill.
`I support farmers, so I do not support the bill that will increase their costs. We can’t allow them to go out of business. Instead, the state needs to do much more to protect farmland and advocate for the agricultural industry,` said Yepsen.
McDonald said he proposed a rural recovery plan for farms and farming communities that he was proud of, but was disappointed it went nowhere.
`It’s very difficult for people from the Big Apple to realize how different we are from them, in a positive way, but nevertheless, different,` said McDonald. `I voted against the state budget for years in a row because the last two budgets would do more to hurt farming communities in New York State.`
Yepsen rebutted, saying the `blame games` have to stop.
`Upstate, downstate, that game is not doing anybody any good in the future. I’ve already begun to work with downstate senators and when we have a strong upstate voice in the senate, we will be more effective. We’ve got to have a real voice at the table and I will work every single day with those downstate senators to bring more funding up here,` said Yepsen.
McDonald rebutted, saying that downstate senators don’t care about upstate.
`Sen. Adams voted against VLT money, that was the budget, they all voted against that and took money from us we’ve got to stand up to these people because they’re hurting the rest of upstate,` said McDonald.
Audience member asked who each candidate supported for governor and if it was Carl Paladino, did they support his position on gay marriage.
`Carl Paladino and I have virtually nothing in common what we do have are two fine individuals, Harry Wilson and Dan Donovan, so my mission is to determine which one of them I’ll write in for governor because they’re running for wrong office,` said McDonald. `My position is like President Obama’s; I believe in civil unions and civil rights.`
`My candidate is Andrew Cuomo and I’m extremely proud to be on the ticket [with him]. He’s responsible, full of integrity and has a five point plan to reduce taxes and spending he’s talking about consolidating government at local and state levels and also maximizing federal funding,,` said Yepsen.
When asked about hyrdrofracking, both candidates said they could not support it without further research to ensure it wasn’t damaging to water supplies.
Both candidates said they were in favor of term limits, with Yepsen saying it is `healthy` and McDonald saying the real problem is with people with wealth and influence running for office.
Candidates for family court judge gave five minute opening statements, only.
Robert Rybak (D) highlighted his emphasis on family values, saying he was one of four kids and is married with two grown children. He said he is very involved in the community of Clifton Park in the form of CAPTAIN and Clifton Park baseball, as well as serving as a parishioner and usher at a church.
Rybak said he is most qualified for theposition because he has judicial experience.
`First and foremost, I’m the only one with judicial experience. Being a judge is more than just being an attorney. I’ve had an office in Clifton Park for 31 years and overseen a wide variety of cases from minor to criminal matters and civil matters,` said Rybak. `The people in my court probably agree I’ve been very fair, try to treat people like I’d want to be treated if I were in court, try to make people as comfortable as they can be in court.`
Jennifer Jensen Bergan (R) said family court judge is one of the most important courts in New York State because it deals with families and children. She has worked for the Saratoga County District Attorney’s office for about 16 years as chief of the special victims unit.
`I came from a familly of 10 children, so I learned early on how to resolve family issues and probably more importantly, how not to,` said Bergan. `For the last almost 27 years, I’ve represented parties in every type of proceeding that exists in family court. I’m fully familiar with rules, proceedings and pleadings in family court, so on day one there’s not a petition that can come before me I would not know how to handle there will be no learning curve.`
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