Drago wins primary

DUTCHESS COUNTY —  With 77.8% of the vote, Chris Drago is the unofficial winner of the Democratic primary held Tuesday, June 27, to select a candidate to run in the November election to represent District 19 in the Dutchess County Legislature. Claire Owens received 22% of the total vote but will still be running in the general election on the Working Families line.

People involved in Democratic politics like Michael Dupree, head of the Dutchess County Democratic Committee, can’t remember the last time there was a Democratic primary for the legislature. “It can be hard to find someone who wants to run,” he commented.

District 19 runs across northern Dutchess County and includes the towns of North East, Pine Plains, Stanford, Milan and a very small part of Red Hook. Owens won in her hometown of North East, receiving 68 votes—59% of votes cast. With 689 registered Democrats in the Town of North East and Village of Millerton, 17%—or 115 registered Democrats—showed up at the polls to vote on a stormy day.

Drago dominated elsewhere with 91.5% in Milan, 86.6% in Pine Plains and 86.8% in Stanford. Owens faced an uphill battle after Drago had won the votes of those towns at the convention of the Dutchess Democratic Committee in February.

The two candidates have very similar positions on the issues facing Dutchess County. Owens emphasized public transportation, affordable housing and education while Drago focused on how county taxes are spent and meeting the basic needs of county residents. The most important issue for Democratic voters was selecting a candidate who might be able to beat popular incumbent Republican Gregg Pulver in the general election in November.

Despite the fact that District 19, according to Dupree, is “purple,”  Owen received 1,609 votes of the total cast of 3,533 two years ago when she was the Democratic candidate. This year’s primary has helped Drago, a political newcomer, introduce himself in advance to voters. If his plentiful roadside signs are any indication, he will run an active campaign in the fall.

Two weeks before the vote, Owens’ mother fell at home and was taken to Vassar Brothers Hospital. Owens chose to stay by her mother’s side during a critical time and had to take a step back from campaigning.

Although she lost the Democratic primary, Owens will resume her campaign as the Working Families candidate in the general election in November. She expressed gratitude for the support from the community and reported that her mom has made an incredible recovery.

“I’m honored and humbled to have earned the Democratic line for Dutchess District 19 and I’m grateful for the overwhelming support from our community,” commented Drago after the election results were in. “I look forward to continue talking to neighbors across our district in the coming months and working together to win the election in November. Our district is very concerned about current leadership in county government not focusing on the basic needs of our community, and I’m running to change that.”

“Two terrific candidates were motivated to run and the Democratic voters in Legislative District 19 spoke clearly,” observed Dupree. “Turnout in the Democratic primary here was higher than in the City of Poughkeepsie, where there were many contested races.”

According to the Dutchess County Board of Elections, there are 3,001 registered Democrats, 2,440 registered Republicans and 2,279 NOPs (No Official Party) in the 19th county election district. In the last county election, approximately 45% of registered voters came to the polls, so November election results will, once again, be determined by party turnout and the NOPs.