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Election endorsements
Editorial
Decision 2007 includes competitive contests for three town council seats, town clerk, highway superintendent and the eighth district of the Erie County Legislature. Today we offer our endorsements in these races, which are based on interviews with the candidates and their backgrounds, political and personal. Democrats Mary Holtz and Tom Kolbert are running unopposed for town supervisor and justice, respectively. The Times does not offer endorsements in uncontested races. In addition to these races, there are countywide contests for County Executive, Clerk, and County Court Judge, plus elections in other legislative districts that include small portions of Cheektowaga. No matter if you agree with our endorsements or not, we urge you to vote on November 6.
Town Council: Democrats Charlie Markel, Jeff Swiatek and Rick Zydel face Republicans Gerald Kaminski, Richard Maisano and Chauncey Stewart. Many of the candidates appear on additional party lines. Stan Kaznowski is running on the Independence and Conservative lines after losing in the Democratic primary.
Jeff Swiatek and Richard Maisano immediately stood out as the cream of the crop and earn our enthusiastic endorsements. Swiatek's work to reduce health care costs is reflected on their individual budget lines. The challenge from here is to find more savings. Maisano's call to suspend housing assessments for two years in order to "live within our budgets" was the best comment we've heard in years. The third council endorsement proved to be a difficult decision. Kaminski and Kaznowski would both make excellent choices, and the voter would be wrong to completely dismiss them, but Rick Zydel gets the nod. He appears to be coming into his own after sitting back during the first six months of his tenure to get acclimated to the system. We endorsed Charlie Markel in 2005, but the competition was much stiffer this time around. Stewart possesses a unique knowledge of the town from his experience in the police department. Stewart and Markel are encouraged to remain involved in the political process; their time will come. This year marks the strongest field of candidates in a long time from all parties involved.
Town Clerk: Democrat Alice Magierski faces Republican Susan Nolder in the race for the post that will be vacated by Mary Holtz when she becomes town supervisor. Magierski wins our endorsement. Her experience in the Cheektowaga-Sloan School District will be an asset in the clerk's office. Magierski also satisfactorily cleared up a recent complaint about late-issued payroll checks in the district and provided a document that indicates a bank error caused the problem. Nolder was contacted for an interview, but asked if she could call back to schedule her interview. We're still waiting for that phone call. The Times does not endorse candidates who do not interview with our editorial staff.
For Town Highway Superintendent, we endorse the Democrat, Mark Wegner, who displayed an impressive knowledge of the department and provided ideas to improve and co-ordinate jobs from road repair to brush collection and even sanitation collection. Republican candidate Scott Rybczynski is certainly likable and willing to serve the public. However, out of all the elected positions in town, he decided to run for the one post that requires strong knowledge of its inner workings. A candidate with a highway background is needed here. In addition, we are aware of residents' complaints about both departments and will hold the successful candidate responsible for improving public relations between the departments and the public.
Erie County Legislator, District 8: In a re-match from 2005, Tom Mazur squares off against Republican Jeff Sell. Mazur won in 2005 with 61 percent of the vote, but the political climate today- at least for this district seat- has changed in two years. Republican Jeff Sell has the endorsement of his own town party, a claim that Mazur cannot make. This doesn't bode well for Mazur; his popularity within his own party appears to have ebbed. Three Democrats mounted a primary challenge against him in September. One of those challengers, Debbie Kubiak, remains on the Working Families line, while the Conservatives yanked their support for Lancaster attorney John Dudziak and threw it behind Mazur. Sell also has the Independence Party's support.
Both candidates expressed their individuality and willingness to work with both sides for the county's betterment. Mazur is a major supporter of legislation that would establish dedicated funding to arts and tourism in Erie County. He also stepped up to resolve Cheektowaga's dispute with the county over road debris from the October 2006 snowstorm. While Mazur touts his ability to work behind the scenes to get things done, such as finding the middle ground on former legislator Ray Dusza's price scanning accuracy law to appease both consumer and vendor, his assertion that nepotism "shenanigans" at County Hall are "over" is not convincing. Sell points to Mazur's attempt to hire Dusza in January 2006 as evidence that political patronage is alive and well at County Hall. The legislature's failure to place revisions to the county charter before voters shows its distaste for serious reform, Sell added. Sell supports one countywide industrial development agency, eliminating 300 vacant positions still budgeted by the county. We endorse Jeff Sell for the Erie County Legislature's Eighth District.
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