Voters across New York headed to the polls last Tuesday to select candidates in local primary races. Nearly 4,500 voters in Broome County cast ballots in the Republican primary.
The battle for county clerk was the top race in this year’s primary. Former Binghamton city mayor Rich David, who served from 2014 to 2021, faced off against Aaron Martin, a county legislative clerk for the past 14 years.
Martin earned 54.17 percent of the vote while David received 45.44 percent. The next day, David posted a statement on Facebook thanking his supporters.
“While we didn’t get the result we hoped for, I’m proud of the effort we put forward and grateful for the people who stood with me,” David wrote. “It was a hard-fought race and I wish my opponent well.”
In February, David kicked off his campaign at the Old Union Hotel in Binghamton’s First Ward. He received endorsements from several Republican officials, including Joseph Mihalko, the current clerk since 2018, who announced in January that he would not run for reelection.
That week, Martin launched his campaign with fellow supporters and said he felt “confident that I have the experience to take this on.”
The county clerk is responsible for overseeing the Department of Motor Vehicles and maintaining county records.
“Over the months, we’ve knocked on thousands of doors to meet voters face-to-face to introduce ourselves and hear directly from them about what is on their minds,” read a statement on Martin’s campaign Facebook account. “Along the way, we also earned the endorsement of many County, Town and Village officials — those doing the work every day to serve the community.”
“We’re grateful for the support of so many voters yesterday, and look forward to continuing to work hard between now and General Election Day in November,” the statement continued.
In Johnson City, voters also selected two candidates for village trustee. John Walker and Clark Giblin, who currently serve as trustees, both received 207 votes and defeated two other Republicans on the ballot.
The local Democratic, Conservative and Working Families Parties did not hold a primary this year.
The winning candidates will now advance to the Nov. 4 general election. Martin will likely face off against Nick Libous, the son of the late State Sen. Tom Libous, a Republican who represented the Binghamton area from 1989 to 2015.
Binghamton’s mayoral election will also take place in November, where Mayor Jared Kraham is up for reelection. Kraham, elected in 2021 as the city’s youngest-ever mayor, faces a challenge from Democrat Miles Burnett.
“Congratulations to our strong slate of Republican candidates and all of the primary challengers who had the guts to run for office,” Benji Federman, chair of the Broome County Republicans, said in a statement. “We have healthy competition amongst our ranks because the Broome Republicans offer candidates the best chance at victory in November as we continue to over-perform and win tough races.”
“Now it’s time to come together to face our common opponents — reckless local Democrats who’ve already pledged to defund our police, raise our taxes and advance backwards priorities,” the statement concluded.
In New York City, registered Democrats last Tuesday selected their top choices for mayor. Incumbent Democratic Mayor Eric Adams, whose federal corruption case was dismissed in April, pulled out of the party’s primary that month, opting to run for reelection as an independent candidate.
In a notable upset, Zohran Mamdani, a progressive state assemblymember representing a district in Queens, defeated former governor Andrew Cuomo, who resigned in 2021 after an investigation by the state attorney general’s office found he had sexually harassed 11 women. Mamdani won 56 percent of votes after ranked choice tabulation, compared to Cuomo’s 44 percent.
Despite this, Cuomo declined to drop out of the mayoral race altogether, likely ensuring his name will appear next to the “Fight & Deliver” ballot line in the general election.
Primary elections for city council, borough president and district attorney were also held.
In Buffalo, Democrat Sean Ryan, a state senator endorsed by the Erie County Democratic Committee in February, defeated Acting Mayor Chris Scanlon in a primary race. Ryan criticized Scanlon for accepting donations made from a relative of Carl Paladino, a Republican and former congressional candidate who supports President Donald Trump.