The 110th Assembly District race is getting crowded, with four candidates in the running and one in the wings.
Kevin Frazier, Tim Nichols and Phil Steck, all Democrats, have announced their intent to run and Niskayuna Town Supervisor Joe Landry, also a Democrat, said he’s “considering” it and that a decision will be made “in the near future.” Jennifer Whalen, the sole Republican candidate, has been endorsed by the Schenectady County GOP.
“Even though she is not a Schenectady person, we did endorse her,” said Jim Buhrmaster, Schenectady County Republican Committee chairman, adding there was nobody from the county interested in running.
The newly drawn 110th District includes the Towns of Colonie and Niskayuna and a portion of the City of Schenectady. The seat was vacated when Assemblyman Bob Reilly, D-Loudonville, who represented the 109th Assembly District pre-redistricting, announced he would not seek reelection. With the exception of Landry, all candidates reside in Colonie.
Albany County Democratic Committee Chairman Matthew Clyne said the number of candidates isn’t surprising.
“It’s a non-incumbent situation so you have a vacancy and any time you have a vacancy you’re going to have a larger pool of candidates,” said Clyne.
The Town of Colonie Democratic Committee has the task of endorsing a candidate and Chairman Richard Jacobson, also an Albany County legislator, said the committee is still sifting through the candidate pool.
Steck has served four terms on the county legislature and his hanging his hat on the fact that he has no state government experience.
“I pretty much come from the grassroots of the Democratic party. I never worked for the Assembly in any capacity or the Senate and I think that gives me an excellent perspective,” said Steck. “I think my loyalty will be solely to the voters.”
The issues of education and the county nursing home are high on Steck’s list of priorities to tackle at the state level.
“One of the things we’ve been going through in Albany is the question o f whether to build a new nursing home and what format that should take. I’ve been a supporter of building the nursing home,” said Steck. “Another issue that goes hand in hand with it is I’ve been a strong supporter of increased funding to allow seniors to stay in their homes longer.”
Steck said both issues need “greater attention” by the state, which determines how the projects are funded.
He also wants to see state dollars better invested education.
“I think a problem we have with education in the State of New York is a very bloated educational bureaucracy. We’re not putting the dollars where they belong, which is in educating children,” said Steck.
Nichols is also an Albany County legislator in his fourth term and has served as Reilly’s chief of staff since 2005. He said an Assembly run is something he’s been interested in for awhile.
“I think the biggest issue is economic development and creating jobs but I’ve also very interested in supporting public education and I feel that New York State really needs to do a lot more … and should do a lot more in terms of supporting them with more state aid and in terms of real mandate relief,” said Nichols.
His experience at various government levels is what sets him apart from his running mates, said Nichols.
“I think I’m the best qualified candidate because I have the most relevant experience. I’ve been active locally on various different levels,” said Nichols. “The Town of Colonie is the largest part of the 110th as it was with the 109th so I bring a great deal of experience to the district. I’m knowledgeable about the people and about their needs and the issues they face every day.”
He said he’s not worried about the number of candidates he’ll face in the primary election.
“I’ll be able to demonstrate to the voters that I’m the best fit for this district. I’m really looking forward to meeting people and putting my record out there,” said Nichols.
Frazier has early endorsements from Reilly and Colonie Supervisor Paula Mahan and that early support played a big part in his decision to throw his hat in the ring.
“Mainly, when Bob called me to tell me that he was going to retire and at the end of the conversation encouraged me to fill his seat, told me he believed I had what it took,” said Frazier. “I’ve been a big part of his campaign team over the years so that conversation was really a life changing conversation for me.”
Frazier, who most recently worked under Assembly Majority Leader Ron Canestrari, said education was the No.1 issue for him.
“I think the No.1 function of government is to provide quality education for our kids and prepare our kids for the next step,” said Frazier.
Education goes right along with economic development, the second biggest issue on his radar.
“We’ve seen in the last few years investments that the Assembly had made and previous governors had made in the field of high tech and nanotechnology. We’ve seen those seeds that were planted explode,” said Frazier. “To continue to cultivate high tech job growth in the Capital Region goes hand in hand with making sure we’re in the schools teaching these kids and giving them the tools.”
Frazier said he welcomes the competition.
“The more the merrier. It’s an open process and everybody has the right to run,” said Frazier. “… I look forward to talking our case to the people of Colonie, Niskayuna and Schenectady.”
Though Landry won’t officially confirm his intent to run, he said if he did he would tackle reductions in state aid being felt across the board.
“Right now is a critical time as far as many issues surfacing throughout the town, throughout the state regarding state aid. This district that we’re in, there’s a lot of reductions in state aid in different areas that are impacting our schools, our municipalities, I and I think I can hopefully make a difference and work on the state level,” said Landry.
Whalen, who couldn’t be reached for comment, went up against Reilly two years ago in a 109th Assembly race that came down to absentee ballots.
