Westchester

Ever since I entered the political world, October has been a crazy month. I have been helping candidates in campaigns or running myself every year since 1992. (Plus, Barbara Keating for U.S. Senate in 1974 and Frank Garito for Mayor in 1975 as a kid). When you are in October of a campaign, your life is upside down. Any serious candidate is out there campaigning about 15 hours per day. I have accomplished some very difficult things in my life such as Marine Corps boot-camp, passing the bar exam and litigating trials, and the last month of a campaign ranks up there with those tough chores.

This was a “kitchen sink” kind of day, where it seemed
that Jim did just about everything that a candidate has to do in an election.  Interview with Conservative Party delegates in Dutchess (check); meet voters at the Pleasant Valley Community Day & Parade, also in Dutchess (check); attend the GOP pig roast
in Poughkeepsie (check); put up lawn signs all over Dutchess & Westchester(check). Whew! What a day. 

Sept. 18 was a day where it seemed that Jim was in more than one place at the same time! He started the morning in Dutchess for the Stamford Community Day & Parade.  Then, he headed back to Westchester for the Eastchester Firefighters Picnic.  After meeting a lot of friendly supporters there, he went to Port Chester where Neri Bakery celebrated its 100^thanniversary with a great party for the whole community.  The final stop of the day was the Greek Festival in New Rochelle.  This event attracts people from throughout southern Westchester, and we think Jim met nearly all of them!  

On Sept. 15, Jim attended events with the Northern Westchester Bar Association, Northeast Yonkers Republican Club and Scarsdale Republican Committee. On Sept. 16, Jim headed to Dutchess County for Sheriff Butch Anderson’s Annual Golf Outing.  Jim’s not a golfer, but he showed his support by attending the post-golf dinner.  As always, Jim was touched by the welcome reception he received from his friends in Dutchess, in particular Sheriff Anderson. Later that night, Jim headed back to his hometown of New Rochelle,where he stopped by Cynthia Lobo’s fund raiser at the Davenport Club.  Cynthia is running for New Rochelle City
Court Judge.  On Sept. 17, Jim attended the Eastchester Columbus Day Dinner Dance. It was another great few days of campaigning and meeting lots of people. 

Jim's been so busy on the campaign trail that this blogger lost track of the posts!  Let's catch up with what's been going on.  The evening of Sept. 8, Jim attended the Westchester County Conservative Party annual dinner and on Sept. 9 took part in the New Rochelle GOP meeting. At both events, Jim said hello to many old friends and received a lot of support.  He took time out from campaigning to attend 9/11 services in Mt. Pleasant and New Rochelle. Then, on Sunday, Sept. 12, he was in Pawling for a GOP steak BBQ...next, he stopped at the Dover GOP event.  Both get two thumbs up. That night, the campaign team met to discuss strategy for the coming weeks. Whew! This blogger is exhausted just writing about this hectic schedule!! More to come when we catch up with Jim again....until then, here's a photo of some of our hard-working volunteers who helped put together about 500 lawn signs last weekend.
 

Vets for New York (VFNY) today announced its support of Jim Maisano for New York State Supreme Court in the 9th Judicial District.  In giving its endorsement, VFNY cited Jim’s longstanding dedication to veterans during his tenure as a Westchester County Legislator, his leadership in fighting for lower taxes and less spending, as well as his military service in the United States Marine Corps.

“We strongly support Jim Maisano for Supreme Court,” said Kieran Michael Lalor, founder of Vets for New York.  "He has been fighting for fiscal responsibility for over a decade as a legislator.  As a former Marine, he has a unique appreciation for the issues that veterans face and is a leader on veteran issues.  We are impressed that Jim was one of the veterans that originally brought the need for legislation providing property tax relief for cold war veterans to the New York State Legislature.  Jim’s advocacy helped pass this law in Albany.  We are sure his experience as an attorney, legislator and Marine will ensure that Jim will be an excellent Supreme Court Justice." (for more, click on the title)

The Westchester Hispanic Law Enforcement Association (WHLEA) announced its endorsement of Jim Maisano for Supreme Court Justice, 9th Judicial District and Patricia O’Callaghan for Westchester Family Court Judge.  The WHLEA cited both candidates’ longstanding record of leadership on law enforcement issues, commitment to equal treatment under the law, and understanding of the issues that all Westchester residents face, particularly in the Hispanic and Latino communities.  (Please note that a photo of the endorsement is attached to this email).

“We are proud to support Jim Maisano for Supreme Court and Patricia O’Callaghan for Family Court,” said Luis Muniz, WHLEA President. “Both Jim and Patricia are staunch supporters of our efforts to keep our neighborhoods safe and secure, and as judicial candidates they are deeply committed to enforcing the law.  They are highly qualified, and have proven to be leaders willing to listen to the concerns of all residents. We encourage law enforcement and all voters to support these two outstanding candidates on Election Day.” (click on the title for complete article & photo)

Who said that campaigning had to be all hard work? Friday night, Jim, Jean and Michael headed out to the Yonkers waterfront where they not only met a lot of people, but also enjoyed a fun family night.  After shaking hands (and a few paws...see the flickr photos) they took in part of the concert and then walked over to Dolphin Restaurant. The open seating allowed them to still hear the great music while enjoying a fantastic meal. Jim ran into Doug Martino, who is running for Westchester County Court Judge, as well as a friend from Facebook. If you haven't visited the Yonkers waterfront, check it out.  Pictured here is Jim with John Rubbo, a friend from Facebook. Remember to visit flickr for more photos.

On Wednesday, August 11, Jim campaigned at a concert in West Harrison next to Silver Lake. Jim had a great volunteer team: Sue, Maggie & his son Michael. It was a big crowd and part of the entertainment was local kids from the summer camp program who sang and danced. Jim and the gang received a very warm reception and gave out fans and nail files. And the team enjoyed some pizza after the concert.

Well, it finally happened. You know the old expression about campaigning so hard that you wore a hole in the soles of your shoes? Jim did it and the photo below shows just how much walking he's done on the campaign trail!  Today took him to the Indian-American Independence Day ceremony in Yonkers. This event celebrates India's independence from Great Britain.  Next stop was the East Fishkill Republican Lobster Bake (yum!). The third and final stop of the day: the Pawling Firefighter Parade. Jim received a great reception at all the events. Tomorrow, he needs to take a break to buy a new pair of shoes!