As an integral part of any democratic system, voting is an important step for all citizens to become involved in as soon as it becomes available to them, and with election season fast approaching, the Union community is preparing to voice their opinions on both the national and state level in matters which will shape the future of New York State and the United States as a whole.
After over twelve years in office, Democratic representative of the New York State Assembly’s 111th district Angelo Santabarbara’s seat is being contested by Republican Joseph Mastroianni. Santabarbara’s left-of-center position on state infrastructure, equal rights for those with disabilities, and law enforcement reform has overtaken Mastroianni once before in the 2022 race. Further information on Santabarbara can be found through his page on the New York State Assembly website. The nearly 130,000 person district, which makes up a 225 square mile region extending from Schenectady to Amsterdam, has historically voted left-leaning, but with margins at or about ten percent, still boasts a strong conservative-leaning community, which favors Mastroianni’s perspective on gun control. News associated with Mastroianni’s 2024 bid is compiled on his website at: joe4ny.com.
These candidates will likely voice opinions regarding the proposed amendment to article 1 section 11, an equal rights clause which protects individuals against discrimination due to race, religion, and skin color. The amendment, if passed, will extend the protections to protect citizens on the basis of sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, and several other identifying factors. Proposal Number One, as it is called, will appear on the New York State ballot for voters to decide on November 5th.
The seats for New York’s 26 Congressional districts also approach the ballots, with Schenectady voters in New York’s 20th district having a race between incumbent Democrat Paul Tonko and Republican candidate Kevin Waltz. Both politicians were chosen in an uncontested primary on June 25th of this year. The more than forty year long legislative career of incumbent Tonko has sponsored over three thousand bills, most recently targeting the bolstering of funds for healthcare development and medical research. This information is documented and shared with the public in the many press releases which the candidate has compiled on his website: tonko.house.gov. Kevin Waltz, a recently graduated criminal justice student from the University of Albany who is currently pursuing a Juris Doctorate at his alma mater, has voiced strong support for many contentious topics such as gun control and border security with a definitive conservative tone. All of the information on Waltz’s campaign for office can also be found at his website: waltzforny.com.
Finally, the seat of incumbent New York State Senator Kirsten Gillibrand of the Democratic Party, held since 2009, is currently contested by Republican Mike Scapraicone. As mentioned on her senate website, gillibrand.senate.gov, her platform has initiated military justice and workplace reform, helped repeal the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy set in place during the Clinton Administration, and has raised over $12 million in support of campaigning female Democrats. Gillibrand’s opponent, former police detective Mike Sapraicone, whose poll numbers have steadily rose from about 30% to 40% across the month of September, is campaigning on a conservative platform with no prior formal political experience save for an unsuccessful prior bid for a congressional seat in New York’s 3rd congressional district. The Republican ticket’s campaign website, which details Sapraicone’s career and media coverage of his platform, can be found at: mikesapraiconeforsenate.com.
The deadline to register to vote in Schenectady is October 26th, 2024, and students can register by mail or in person by visiting https://elections.ny.gov/registration-and-voting-deadlines to learn more. Union College’s UVOTE voter information program will also host tables during common hour in Reamer Campus Center to collect voter registration information.
