Rye Councilwoman to Challenge Latimer for State Senate
A Rye city councilwoman officially launched her campaign on Friday for the 37th state Senate District seat looking to help the Republicans capture a district the party has long coveted.
Julie Killian, who has served the past four years on the city council, announced her candidacy at Rye Town Park, where she pledged to aggressively fight substance abuse, work to provide tax and mandate relief and improve public schools and support term limits.
If Killian is the Republican nominee, she will take on take on two-term Democratic incumbent and fellow Rye resident George Latimer in November. The district extends from a portion of Yonkers, through the Sound Shore communities, White Plains, North Castle and Bedford.
In her remarks, she said state government’s spending and taxing have been excessive and needs reform.
“I don’t care if you’re a Democrat or a Republican in Albany, if you are ready for change and want to make government a little smarter and work better for the taxpayer then I will work with you,” said Killian, who has served various local organizations and was on the county’s Charter Review Commission from 2011 to 2014. “We simply have to work together for the greater good.”
Killian, who earned a chemical engineering degree from Notre Dame and worked in finance at Merrill Lynch and Citibank for 13 years, said if elected she would work to get public schools the financial aid needed to be successful. She also said there must be meaningful mandate relief and pension reform to ease the burden on schools and local governments.
A co-founder of Rye Action for Children and Teens (RyeACT), which helps educate youngsters on the dangers of drugs, Killian said she would press for a bigger commitment from the state on substance abuse issues.
“We have a heroin crisis,” said Killian, who has five children and lives with her husband, Gary. “It is of grave concern. But we also have a crisis with alcohol and marijuana that most people don’t fully recognize.”
Killian said she wants to streamline regulations that make New York one of the least friendly business states in the nation. She is also a supporter of term limits.
Latimer, who also served on the Rye City Council before becoming a county and state legislator, said he isn’t familiar with Killian’s work or her public record but has seen her at local functions previously.
He said he expects a tough race because over the past two election cycles the county and state Republicans have outspent him and have been targeting his seat in hopes of expanding their thin advantage in the Senate.
“I think I’m the only senator of the 63 senators that has been outspent the last two elections and has won,” Latimer said. “I think the money isn’t a dominant factor but it is a factor, so I have to make up for it in shoe leather.”
Killian said she would make a successful transition from local government to the state Senate because she takes time to understand each issue, listen to all stakeholders and come up with fact-driven and common sense solutions.
“I am a mother, a neighbor, a longtime community volunteer, and a deeply concerned citizen,” Killian said. “Everyone who knows me understands exactly why I’m running for State Senate. I love New York but I am deeply concerned about our New York state government. Regular people like me have lost confidence in Albany.”
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/
