Campaigns Off To Fast Start In ’21 Revised Calendar Requires 6-Month Campaign Season By JIM KEVLIN • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com Election Day is still six months away, but in the past few days it’s been off to the races, the local races. With Oneonta Mayor Gary Herzig’s announcing his retirement last week, three candidates immediately emerged to succeed him, a Democrat and two Republicans. Leading up to Tuesday, March 2, the first day nominating petitions can be circulated, a similar…
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Otsego County Board of Representatives - Page 8
LETTER from ONEONTA COMMON COUNCIL & Otsego County Board of Representatives So Where Do You Stand? Democracy? Insurrection? To the Editor: The violence in D.C. on Jan. 6, 2021, which led to the deaths of five people, have clarified the one question that needs to be asked of our country, state and regional representatives: Are you for the democratic process or are you for insurrection? There is no longer any nuance, thanks to the actions of a group of pro-President…
LETTER from CHIP NORTHRUP Ignore Gun Laws? See You In Court To County Representatives: As elected officials, you of all people do not have the luxury of deciding which laws you will uphold and which you will ignore, much less willfully and publicly flaunt as a partisan political stunt. If you adopt this scofflaw “gun sanctuary” ordinance, you will be sued for failure to uphold New York State laws – laws that you are free to challenge in court, but…
With 10th Death, County ‘Overwhelmed,’ Bond Says County Staffing Increased As Deaths, COVID Infections Keep Growing By LIBBY CUDMORE • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com Help is on the way after county Public Health Director Heidi Bond lamented that her department is “overwhelmed.” “We’re barely keeping up with the cases coming in,” she said. “With contact tracing, that means you might not get a call if you’ve been identified as a close personal contact in a timely manner.” On Monday, Dec. 14,…
Editorial If You Want Public Office, You Ought To Say Why Publicly The county board’s Administration Committee set a poor precedent in deciding to interview candidates for state Sen.-elect Peter Oberacker’s District 6 seat in “executive session” – that is, in secret, out of the public view. The county attorney, Ellen Coccoma, last week advised the Admin Committee when it interviewed the Republican candidate, Jennifer Mickle, that whether to do so in public or not was optional, up to the reps.…
LETTER from ANDREW STAMMEL After Vacancy Rift, Bi-Partisan Trust Needs Rebuilding To the Editor: The run of bi-partisanship on the county Board of Representatives has been interrupted by the Republican caucus’ recent efforts to steamroll through a replacement for Representative Oberacker. During my two and a half terms on the county board, cooperation between parties has ebbed and flowed. Since the 2017 election it has been split 7-7 between Democrats and Republican-affiliated members. Thankfully, a bi-partisan governing coalition and leadership…
Appointing Oberacker Successor Complicated By JIM KEVLIN • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com COOPERSTOWN – Peter Oberacker, elected state senator on Nov. 3, will be leaving the Otsego County Board Dec. 31 at the latest and is blocked by the county board’s Rules of Order from voting on his successor. Absent bipartisanship, that creates a deadlock. There are 6,228 “weighted votes” distributed among the 14 county reps, and without Oberacker’s 534 votes, the Republicans don’t have the 3,115-vote majority to fill his seat…
Ruled ‘Essential Services,’ OFO Shelters Reopened By LIBBY CUDMORE • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com ONEONTA – Citing the domestic violence and homeless shelters “essential services,” the Otsego County Board of Representatives and the county’s Department of Social Services have reopened both buildings. “We’re happy that they have reopened and that they are helping these vulnerable populations in our community,” said county Rep. Adrienne Martini, D-Oneonta, chair of the county board’s Human Services Committee. “It’s so important that they be open and…
2nd Amendment Rally Delayed; 2AS Group Preparing Petitions By JIM KEVLIN • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com LAURENS – Due to the Coronavis threat and Governor Cuomo’s restrictions on gatherings, the Otsego County Second Amendment Rally planned this Sunday at the VFW Post 1417 on Ellis Road has been postponed, according to Pat Brockway. Meanwhile, the 2AS group seeking to have the county declared a sanctuary where the SAFE Act would not be enforced is continuing to compile petitions, and by March…
Petitions Vie Over Firearms By JIM KEVLIN • Special to www.AllOTSEGO.com COOPERSTOWN Opponents of turning Otsego County into a “Second Amendment Sanctuary” are faster on the draw than proponents, at least when it comes to petitions. On their behalf, Mary Anne Whelan, the retired Bassett physician, was planning to turn in petitions with “many hundred” signatures to the county Board of Representatives when it met Wednesday, March 4. “We … respectfully ask the county Board of Representatives to declare support…
