ALBANY COUNTY—On Tuesday, Nov. 1, members of the Albany County Republican Legislative Conference reappointed Rachel Bledi to a new two-year term as Albany County Elections Commissioner.
An Albany resident, Bledi was originally appointed to the position of Elections Commissioner in 2011 and is the first female to hold that position in Albany County. She will be serving her fourth two-year term.
“We are pleased to reappoint Rachel as the Republican Elections Commissioner for Albany County,” said Albany County Legislature’s Minority Leader Frank Mauriello. “While the other party is still working to straighten out their team at the Board of Elections, we go into this election knowing our Republican election officials, led by Rachel Bledi, have the support and confidence of our party and our caucus for the next two years.”
While the elections commissioners are usually confirmed by the whole county legislature, state law allows the party’s caucus to confirm their party’s recommendation for elections commissioner if the legislature does not act within 30 days of the political party’s recommendation being filed with the Clerk of the County Legislature. Commissioner Bledi’s certificate of appointment was filed on September 27, 2016.
Prior to her 2011 appointment, Bledi, a graduate of the State University at Albany, worked for the New York State Legislature for 9 years serving as the Deputy Director of Member Services and the Director of Regional Offices for the Republican Conference of the New York State Assembly. In 2012, she was selected to serve on the Legislative Committee of the New York State Elections’ Commissioner’s Association, serving as a Republican representative on numerous issues being considered in New York State including early voting, online voting, voter accessibility and voters’ rights. In 2015, Bledi was selected to serve on the United States Elections Assistance Commission, a bi-partisan national commission working to develop voting systems guidelines.
“Fair and open elections are the bedrock of our democracy,” she said. “I am humbled to be a participant in the election process, and I am grateful to members of the Republican legislative caucus and party committee for again trusting me to guide that process in Albany County.”
