State
Chair Addresses Independence Party Candidates, Supporters
$200 RAISED FOR SEPTEMBER 11TH FUND
FREDONIA - State Independence
Party Chairman Frank MacKay recently addressed party candidates and supporters
here, urging voters to cast ballots on Row C in the November 6th election.
“Voters, for years now, have been voting split
tickets,” said MacKay in citing the trend by voters away from casting ballots
for all the candidates of just one political party. “The candidates endorsed
by the Independence Party represent the very best each of the major parties have
to offer.”
Row C, the Independence Party’s ballot line, he
said, “has become the choice of Republicans who want vote for Democratic
candidates, and of Democrats who want to vote for Republicans.”
“We continue to be the party for people who vote
for the person, not the party,” said county chairman, Randall J. Brown, noting
the list of Independence Party-endorsed candidates in this year’s county and
local elections include a wide array of Democrats and Republicans.
County Executive Mark Thomas and District Attorney
James Subjack, both Democrats, and Repbulican County Clerk, Sandra Sopak, each
received the Independence Party’s endorsement in this year’s election, Brown
pointed out.
MacKay said some political party leaders in the
state have questioned what the Independence Party stands for.
“We (Independence Party members) stand for
electoral reform, plain and simple,” stated MacKay. “We support ‘same
day’ voter registration, and we support the opportunity for direct public
input into policy through voter initiative and referendum. We support the
addition of a third, non-partisan member of each county’s Board of Elections
to ensure equal ballot access to minor party candidates and candidates
unaffiliated with any political party.”
MacKay said the Independence Party’s membership
is composed of a broad coalition of voters with viewpoints that span the
political spectrum.
"What brought us together, what keeps us
together, what has made us the third largest and fasting growing political party
in New York State is that our platform is not ideological. It is not a social
agenda. It is an agenda for better government through greater public
participation in the process,” he said.
Brown said the principles the Independence Party
embraces – democratic choice, electoral accountability and fiscal
responsibility – formed the basis for the county executive committee’s
candidate endorsements.
“I commend the dedicated and diligent work of
the executive committee members in selecting candidates for endorsement in this
year’s election,” he said. “Every endorsed candidate is deserving of
support.”
A resident of Rocky Point, Long Island, MacKay was
in the county to help raise funds for the local party committee.
Brown reported today that $200 of the fundraising
proceeds are being donated to the United Way’s September 11th Fund to aid the
families of victims of the recent terrorist attacks on the nation.
“I doubt with less than a month to go before the
election that too many political parties are making charitable contributions,”
Brown said. “The county Independence Party’s leadership just felt it
important to help those who suffered such unimaginable losses, even if in a
small way.”
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