Poughkeepsie voters elect new leadership

Hayley Tsukayama News Editor

Preliminary reports show that Republican John Tkazyik has defeated his Democratic opponent, City Legislator Fred Knapp, in the City of Poughkeepsie mayoral election with 52 percent of the vote.

Tkazyik, 28, is a three-term veteran of the Poughkeepsie Common Council, and ran his campaign on a clear three-issue platform: public safety, taxes and economic revitalization. In a February campaign speech, Tkazyik said that if elected, he would emulate Rudolph Giuliani, who garnered praise for his city revitalization program during his seven years as New York City mayor.

Tkazyik cited his frustration with the current Democratic mayor Nancy Cozean, whom he criticized for being fiscally irresponsible and too bureaucratic to foster economic growth, as evidenced by the new but vacant storefronts of downtown Poughkeepsie. His campaign motto—“Poughkeepsie needs a work horse, not a show horse”—was a direct jab at Cozean, according to the Poughkeepsie Journal.

Yet Tkazyik and Poughkeepsie Republicans were not the only ones who believed Cozean led the city astray during her four-year term as mayor. In a surprising move, the Democratic Council chose not to endorse the incumbent Cozean in the October primaries, backing seasoned candidate Knapp to oppose Tkazyik in the general election.

“I’m filled with joy to know that the voters of this city have the faith and confidence in me to be their next mayor,’’ Tkazyik said of his apparent victory, according to the Poughkeepsie Journal. As of Tuesday night Knapp had not yet conceded, saying that there may still be hundreds of uncounted paper ballots. Results will not be final until Knapp concedes or all ballots are accounted for.

Knapp, an eight-term City Legislator married to Democratic Election Commissioner Frances Knapp, focused his campaign on issues in education and city improvement. He articulated a particular concern that “there has not been a close working relationship between city hall and the school system.”

Both candidates expressed concern over Poughkeepsie’s crime rate and perceived financial insecurity. Tkayzik, who received an official endorsement from the Police Benevolent Institution, vowed to put more police officers on the streets. Similarly, Knapp proposed reinstituting “community policing,” a system in which officers walk a regular beat to become more integrated into the community at large.

Tkazyik’s success could be attributed to his aggressive election campaign, which utilized billboards, posters and an authorized Web site. Knapp, meanwhile, had no official Web presence and only began serious flyer initiatives in the last month.

Voters in the Town of Poughkeepsie re-elected Town Supervisor Democrat Patricia Myers and chose Council members for each of the town’s six wards.

All current Council members were re-elected except for Democrat George J. Finn Jr., who was defeated by Republican Joseph Conte. Republican Todd Tancredi will return as the Town Councilman for Ward 6, which includes Arlington and the Vassar campus. Tancredi defeated Democratic opponent Nancy Hritz-Seft by approximately 180 votes.

With Finn’s defeat, all Council members now carry an affiliation with the Republican Party.

At the county level, voters chose from candidates for the offices of District Attorney, County Executive and County Legislators.

Early elections results indicate the Hon. William Grady will return for another term as Dutchess Country District Attorney.

As of Tuesday night, results indicated that the Democrats gained major victories this election day. They now make up a majority on the County Legislature and increased the number of seats they hold on the Poughkeepsie Common Council.

The county level gain is particularly important, as the Democrats will gain the legislator majority for the first time in thirty years. Roger Higgins, who will likely be the legislature’s majority leader, said that he looks forward to working with Republican County Executive William Steinhaus. Steinhaus was reelected for his fifth term on Tuesday.

On the Vassar campus, many students exercised their right to vote in local elections around the country. Student political organizations tabled in the College Center to encourage students to register to vote in Poughkeepsie or request absentee ballots from their hometowns.

For those registered in the Poughkeepsie area, the College also provided a free shuttle to Arthur S. May Elementary School and the Town Hall, the designated voting locations for the Ward 6 districts that include Vassar’s campus.

The campus is divided into three voting districts: residents of the Terrace Apartments vote in District 2, Town House residents belong to District 3, and South Commons and dormitory residents are in District 4.

Security Officer Kathleen Cramer, who drove the Vassar shuttle from Main Circle to the voting locations every half-hour from 1-9 p.m., said that by 6 p.m., only three Vassar voters had utilized the resource.

John Jakobsen, a Poughkeepsie resident who volunteered to help run the elections, said that about 170 people from District 2 had voted by 5 p.m. “We expect it to pick up once folks get home from work,” he said, adding that the poor weather earlier in the day may have affected morning turnout. He also expressed the hope that more Vassar students would show up at the polls. Volunteer workers from District 4 reported that about 50 percent of registered voters in their district had already voted.

Overall voter turnout was at about 40 percent, typical for a year with only local elections.