Nastke also may be out as GOP Elections Commissioner if job becomes full-time
Republicans on the Columbia County Board of Supervisors joined with frustrated Democrats to vote down the reappointment of Virginia Martin, who had been narrowly recommended by the County Democratic Committee to serve another 2-year term as the party’s Elections Commissioner.
A motion was made from the floor by Hudson’s Sarah Sterling, seconded by Rick Scalera, to accept the CCDC’s recommendation. The motion was voted down, with 20 Supervisors voting no—including Sterling and Scalera—and three (Ancram’s Art Bassin, Chatham’s Maria Lull and Hillsdale’s Peter Cipkowski) voting for Martin.
According to a source close to many Supervisors, Martin was given the option to resign rather than have this vote occur, but did not take it.
Meanwhile, Republican Commissioner Jason Nastke is said to be uninterested in returning to the Board of Elections if Supervisors intend to make the top two jobs full-time, as has been persistently rumored. Gallatin Supervisor John Reilly mentioned his belief there’s a need to “restructure the whole board.”
Nastke, who has served part-time, also does title insurance work which has led to complaints of the former Valatie mayor seldom being in the office, and not giving adequate direction to Board staff. While the change to full-time provides cover for his exit, sources indicate that some Republicans appear eager to have Nastke take this way out without a fight like the one surrounding Martin.
Both Martin and Nastke have each held their posts for roughly a decade. However, despite their experience, the 2019 local elections were plagued by numerous delays and complications, along with a persistent infestation of fleas which caused a disruptive move of offices this Fall. (See this link for this site’s many reports on those issues, some of which have still not come fully to light.)
Martin actually had lost the initial Democratic Committee vote to its vice chair, Erin Stamper, who filled in briefly at the Elections Board in the final stretches of the 2019 election cycle, after Martin abruptly and mysteriously parted ways with staffer James J. “Jimmy” Dolan. However, with four candidates vying for the post, Stamper did not win a majority of weighted votes on the first ballot. On the second ballot, several people changed their vote, giving Martin a very slim margin of victory to become the Democrats’ recommended candidate.
Stamper’s candidacy, which has opened a schism among County Dems, was pushed heavily by CCDC chair Keith Kanaga, along with Sterling, whose daughter Mara Estribou formerly worked under Martin at the Board.
: : : : : :
So what happens now? It doesn’t appear there will be any quick closure, since the Board of Supervisors does not have any apparent right to chose a candidate of their own. The Supervisors’ rules for appointing Election Commissioners are recondite; some confusion has arisen among the members on how exactly they are to be applied.
According to a memo circulated in the past week by BOS attorney Rob Fitzsimmons, if Supervisors reject a party committee’s suggested Commissioner candidate, and the Democratic caucus also votes that person down, the party committee then gets a second chance to make a suggestion—but it must be someone different. (In other words, the CCDC can’t say, “we still want Martin.”)
If that second suggestion is also not approved, it appears that the choice then moves from the CCDC back to the Democratic caucus of the Board of Supervisors, which is made up of Democratic public officials, rather than Dem Committee members.
Indications are that the Democratic Supervisors—dominated by members from Hudson‘s five wards—have been eager to move on from Martin, and made common cause with GOP members to ensure her rejection. Bassin has continued to support Martin behind the scenes, mostly on the basis that he preferred to maintain some continuity at the Board of Elections.
Whether the Supers would approve the nomination of Stamper is unclear, but seems likely. However, it’s possible that with Martin out of the picture, one of these bodies might entertain other ideas—and other candidates might get in line.
Asked whether the CCDC would consider a wider field of candidates, now that Martin has been rejected, Democratic Chair Kanaga seemed surprised at the idea, and was reluctant to say if he would reopen the search for candidates.
