Posted on 02/05/2005 9:01:37 AM PST by The Mayor
Group seeks to unseat incumbents throughout Western New York
By ANTHONY CARDINALE
News Staff Reporter
2/5/2005
More than 40 politically minded people from all over Western New York showed up Thursday evening for a meeting of a new organization intent on unseating incumbents in the next election.Primary Challenge zeroed in on Erie County legislators who support a penny increase in the sales tax.
"We have been in existence for four weeks, and already we have mobilized a small army," said Leonard A. Roberto of Batavia, head of the group. This first public meeting was held in Veterans Park Baptist Church in Depew, where Roberto is the pastor.
First-time candidates will receive help from Primary Challenge, regardless of political affiliation, he said, as long as they have never held public office or a committee position with the Democratic or Republican parties.
Roberto, also a businessman, ran against County Executive Dennis T. Gorski under the flag of Ross Perot's Independence Party in 1995, then challenged State Sen. Mary Lou Rath, R-Williamsville, in 1998. Once a member of the Independence Party's executive committee, Roberto said he got fed up with party politics and decided to work from the outside.
(Excerpt) Read more at buffalonews.com ...
Grand Island businessman Rus Thompson, one of the group's organizers, said he is considering a run against County Legislator Charles M. Swanick, R-Kenmore, or for Grand Island Town Board.
"We should target every legislator who voted for the sales tax increase," Thompson said. "We're taxed to the hilt already."
and here Primary Challenge
New York Ping!
They need to concentrate on unseating Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver- the obstructionist!
Hope they succeed.
And everyone who voted to increase the taxes on the dairy farmers should also be sent packing.
This is a great effort...just wondering to what extent the group is organized and supported as a Libertarian entity, if at all. One of your theoretical supporters has been published by Rockwell and that troubles me.
Don't get me wrong: Given the state of the county and the state I think that the effort needs support, but I worry about fringe groups dividing the Republicans leading to a Democrat monopoly. Yeah, I know the pubbies aren't much better, but they are a whole lot better than the socialist Dems.
As an ex-WNYer, this is wonderful news! I wish them the best.
"It's 11 o'clock, do you know where you incumbent is?"
I agree and we can do nothing untill the elections next year.
We will need to get some candidates into the assembly to vote NO!
We have got to get rid of the veto proof majority silver maintains.
We need to focus on every incumbent one election season at a time.
When we take a couple of seats in this election they will know we are coming and we will gain ground.
Do you have me on your ping list? I haven't left the state yet, you know!!!
:-)
We are not orginized as any entity at all.
The person you are talking about is focused on election law and that is it.
We are not focusing on any issues, we are focused on getting good candidates to challenge the incumbents in the primary.
We are working on a code of ethics for the candidates we will support.
I hear that!
I just wish so often that nice wonderful politicians like the honorable and esteemed Sheldon Silver would get their political cashing out.
*Retching and puking after the herculean effort of trying to sound nice*
Thanks Jigsaw!
Yup, probably in a back room working on a new law or tax to implement on us.
Yes, didn't you get the ping?
nope!
how about that one?
Sounds great!
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