Today's the day for village elections, and while many races across the Catskills have candidates for various village boards and mayors who are running unopposed, there are a few real contests out there. Here's a list of the heated challenges:
Sullivan County
Liberty:
According to the Times Herald-Record, Liberty has a pretty hopping ballot this year:
Liberty voters will go to the polls ... to elect either Republican incumbent Richard Winters or Democrat Clarence Barber as mayor.
They will also decide whether to keep the Village Court or send all its cases to the Town Court.
They'll vote too for village justice; incumbent Harold Bauman is running unopposed.
Two Liberty trustee seats are up for grabs: Republicans Shirley Lindsley and Corinne McGuire are being challenged by Democrats Nick Piatek and Dan Ratner Jr. and Independence candidate Steven Green.
All those candidates will be listed on an old-fashioned paper ballot, which the village is using to save the cost of transporting voting machines. It's charmingly old school. The Liberty Independent, which is run by Piatek, who is running for village trustee, has a quick guide to how to use it (see image above).
Greene County
Tannersville:
The only races that don't involve unopposed candidates in Greene County are in Tannersville, where the incumbent mayor and an incumbent village trustee are fighting off challenges. The best part of this election is the name of one of the parties involved. According to both the Freeman and WGXC, the incumbents, Mayor Lee McGunnigle and trustee Gregory Landers, are running on a newly-formed "Watchful Eye" party ticket.
Delaware County
Fleischmanns:
According to the Catskill Mountain News, a village trustee is attempting to oust the current mayor from his post in the village of Fleischmanns. The battle between the incumbent mayor, Dave Morell, and his challenger, Fred Woller, is occurring mainly in the pages of the CMN, where Morell has discussed his success in winning over $500,000 in grants for the village while Woller has promised more "transparency" if he wins.*
Walton:
The Daily Star writes that there are contests for both mayor and village trustee in Walton:
[I]ncumbent Edward Snow, Patrick Meredith and Mark Lindsay. Walton also has two trustee seats open and three candidates running: Teresa O'Leary, Denise Church and James Bell.
Hobart:
Mayor and trustee are also up for grabs in Hobart, the Star reports:
In Hobart, voters will choose between Kenneth Brockway and Aaron Kaufman for mayor and select two trustees from Charles Reinshagen, Bruce Link and Joseph Rouse.
Sidney:
In Sidney, the mayor's seat is contested, according to the Star:
In Sidney's mayoral race, Andrew Matviak faces Jacqlene Rose. Three candidates -- John R. Redente, Jason J. Woodyshek and Gregory Hitchcock -- had been vying for two four-year terms on the village board, but Hitchcock has withdrawn, according to the village clerk's office.
Schoharie County
Schoharie:
The village of Schoharie has a contested trustee seat, the Star reports:
Schoharie County has a contested race in the village of Schoharie as John Balliett, Lawrence Caza and James P. Shultz are vying for two trustee seats.
Ulster County
Saugerties:
There's some action for the seats on the village board, according to the Daily Freeman:
In the trustee race, incumbent Suzanne LeBlanc is running on the Home Party line, while incumbents Jeannine Dirie and Patrick Landewe, along with Brian Martin, are running on the New Vision Party line. Each of the three seats on the board carries a two-year term.
*Note: An earlier version of this post misstated that Fleischmanns mayoral candidate (and current village trustee) Fred Woller was a former mayor. He is not. Sorry for the error.
