Harckham Receives Endorsements from Kaplowitz, County Officials

New York State Senator Pete Harckham received endorsements for re-election to the State Senate from former Westchester County Board of Legislators (BOL) Chairman Michael Kaplowitz and several county legislators at a press conference held here on the steps of the Michaelian Office Building.

Kaplowitz, the BOL Chair while Rob Astorino, Harckham’s opponent in the State Senate race, was serving as Westchester County Executive, kicked off the remarks by reminding everyone about Astorino’s poor management of the county.

“Our fiduciary role as public servants is critical, and Rob Astorino, as county executive, despite what you may hear and think, did not do a good job with the county’s finances,” said Kaplowitz, who served with Harckham for eight years in the BOL. “During his tenure, (Astorino) set us up for failure when any difficulties came along. Our fund balance, our tax policy and the stability of Westchester county’s finances were very much imperiled by his actions.”

Kaplowitz commented that by being an inflexible idealogue, Astorino was unable to partner with the Democrats on the BOL, and noted, conversely, that Harckham is a “flexible public servant” who understands that his job is to help everyone in his district and support the local economy and schools in the district while also safeguarding the environment.

Also speaking at the event were current BOL Chair Ben Boykin, BOL Majority Leader MaryJane Shimsky, BOL Majority Whip Christopher Johnson and Legislators Catherine Parker, Kitley Covill, Vedat Gashi and Colin Smith.

“Pete Harckham has done more for emergency services than anyone I know,” said Covill. “He works his tail off and is very responsive—not just to me, but to constituents and folks who need help.”

Johnson pointed out that Harckham has fought consistently for fair and affordable housing, and said, “When Pete goes to work in Albany, he not only looks at his district, he looks at the entire state to make sure that you and me, no matter our race, creed or gender, have safe, affordable access to good, quality housing. That’s who he is, and that’s why I’m excited to support his re-election.”

After accepting endorsements from those gathered, Harckham stated that he was proud to run on his record, noting that he had passed 31 bills in the State Legislature during the past year while Rob Astorino “has been fixated on racist mascots.”

Harckham also castigated Astorino for his dismal record as county executive, “busting myths” about his opponent’s performance in office, and listed some egregious consequences of his misrule:

• Left office in 2018 with an $81 million five-year structural deficit;
• Gutted the fund balance by $201 million or 23%;
• Increased the county’s debt to $1.6 billion;
• Bad deals with Playland, North 60 property and county airport;
• Defunded the county police by $1 million his first two years in office;
• Failed to fill 12 open police position, thus limiting county patrols and putting residents at risk;
• Tried to eliminate the county’s Department of Emergency Management Services;
• Cut $37 million from the county’s Department of Health, which hindered its response to a hepatitis outbreak and the coronavirus pandemic;
• Closed all of the county’s community mental health clinics;
• Cut childcare funding for working families, causing family members to leave jobs and seek mandated family assistance programs instead.

In noting that Republicans ruled the State Senate for 46 of the past 50 years, Harckham said that he was voted into office in 2018 to affect important changes, and the immediate results included legislation to protect women’s health, enact common sense gun safety rules, reform voting and assist childhood victims of sexual abuse. The Democratic majority also boosted education funding and passed the toughest climate protection legislation in the country, he added.