This year’s election cycle in the Village of Colonie is shaping up to be more contentious than in years past, with three candidates vying for two trustees seats.
The village, which hasn’t seen a contested election in nearly 20 years, experienced some ballot hiccups recently when Lawrence Warner’s petition to run on the Conservative line was initially denied, a move that was later reversed after a decision by the Albany County Board of Elections.
Village Clerk Patricia Hurley said it has been close to two decades since a seat was last contested in an election.
“(It was) before I was the clerk and before the lady before me was the clerk,” said Hurley. “I don’t know the exact date but it’s been at least 16 or 20 years.”
The three candidates seeking office on Tuesday, March 18, are incumbent Tom Tobin, a member of Your Village Party, who has been on the board since 1998; Patrice Lockhart an Albany County legislator who is also running as a Your Village Party member; and Warner, a 20-year veteran of the Albany County Sheriff’s Department who is running for political office for his first time on the Independent and Conservative lines.
Betty Film, who has served on the Village Board since 1979, is not seeking reelection.
The issue with the ballot initially arose when Warner registered as a Conservative. He was already on the Independent line, and going for two ballot lines is something that isn’t typically done on the village level, according to village attorney David Marinucci.
“He’s there in two different places. There was never any issue with him running on the Independent line; the issue was with him running on the Conservative Party line,” said Marinucci. “Most villages are apolitical. There’s never been a major political party line that has ran.”
The village’s majority Your Village Party is not affiliated with any major party.
In January, Albany County Conservative Party Chairman Richard Stack filed the Conservative Party nominating petition designating Warner as a candidate for the village trustee seat. Mayor Frank Leak filed an objection, with Hurley rejecting the petition citing in a Feb. 18 letter two sections of the election law, saying that the document didn’t meet the requirement of stating the time and place of a primary and that he did not file the required nominating certificate within a specified timeframe.
Stack then asked the Albany County Board of Election to investigate the decision to ensure it was a legal denial of the petition. The County Board of Elections overturned both decisions on Tuesday, Feb. 25, stating Warner did file the paperwork in a timely manner and since there was no other candidate running on the Conservative platform no primary was necessary.
“The rules are different for major political parties. It had to do more with the additional political party,” said Marinucci. “It was just the paperwork is different and the filing of paper work is different.”
Warner said the confusion and delay has taken its toll, but he’s ready to move forward with the election process.
“I understand it’s difficult. I know it’s considered politics. You’ve got to respect the process and respect the law, (but) by them trying to block my Conservative Party nomination, it cost me money and it cost the party money,” he said. “From what I understand, the County Board of Elections ruled against how the village handled it. I’m on the ballot as Conservative and an Independent. I’m just looking to move on.”
Rachel L. Bledi, Republican commissioner for the County Board of Elections, and Clyne, both ruled in the decision.
“Village elections are generally uncontested; you don’t see a lot of competition,” said Bledi.
With the ballot line confusion cleared up in time for the March 18 election, village officials said that the whole issue wasn’t as big of a deal as it seemed.
“It’s been a straightened it out,” said Hurley. “It was not a mistake; it was a difference of opinion between three attorneys.”
The mayor, who served on the Board of Trustees for 16 years and has been mayor for 10, said the village political scene is not typically rife with conflict.
“The Village of Colonie has been independent, and we try to stay out of the party thing; we try to serve the people,” said Leak. “The gentleman running against us has two party lines. That’s the way I understand it.”