By Bob Gaydos
With all the celebrating and hope that welcomed Tuesday's blue wave election results of Democratic victories, I was rewarded with the best kind of all a race that was a microcosm of todays Republican Party approach to governing: Unqualified candidate, lying, deceit. Best of all, it was local. And the Democrat won.
The Town of Wallkill in Orange County, about an hour's drive from New York City, has been pretty much a Republican stronghold forever. Its a bustling town that profits from a highway system and a string of malls that grew up around it. It has one of the state's busier court systems, providing enough work for three town justices.
When one of the senior justices retired, Republicans offered as candidate a former councilman who is not a lawyer and has no court experience. For some reason with which I am not familiar, New York State allows this. Democrats offered as a candidate a lawyer with 34 years of experience handling hundreds of cases in Family Court and other courts and who also is a key staff member of the Legal Aid Society. A woman, by the way.
Hands-down, no contest on qualifications and experience. So Republicans, who control the town board, decided the town didn't need a third judge after all. Couldn't afford it, they said. They voted to eliminate the position. This, even though the retiring judge said the town really did need three judges and not filling the position would put an unfair burden on the court staff, never mind the two judges left.
Republicans didn't budge. However, the Democratic candidate circulated petitions asking for a special referendum reestablishing the third judge position. It passed. But not before more Republican chicanery.
They told the Democratic candidate that the wording of the question on the special election would ask voters whether the town should eliminate the third town justice position. So she paid for lawn signs and printed cards to pass around town urging residents to vote no. Then Republicans decided to change the wording to instead ask whether the town should retain its third judge position, making the Democrats election handouts extremely counterproductive.
She went to State Supreme Court to get it changed back. A sympathetic judge said there was nothing she could do, but hoped that the Republicans would do the decent thing.
They didn't.
Came Tuesday and, following a few months of intensive campaigning, of all things, the Democrat won. Big.
Thats not all. Wallkill voters kicked out the Republican town supervisor and a councilman, giving Democrats control of the town board. A veritable local earthquake.
This story is especially rewarding for me because I lived in the town of Wallkill for about two decades and for nearly three decades worked at the local newspaper that would have reported on this incredible local story, if there was a viable local newspaper left in town.
But thats another story for another day. This day belongs to Maria Patrizio, Democrat, newly elected Town Justice, Town of Wallkill, Orange County, New York.
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(Article changed on Nov 07, 2025 at 11:27 AM EST)
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