Wagner to Try Again With Second Run for 40th State Senate District
Election Day 2013 may have just passed but the first local candidate for the 2014 elections officially announced his candidacy on Thursday.
Democrat Justin Wagner, who narrowly lost to Republican state Sen. Greg Ball in the 40th Senate District race last fall, plans to take another shot at the same seat next year.
Wagner, 32, an attorney, pointed to the hyper partisan political environment and the need for expanded economic opportunity in the region as two of the key reasons he plans to run again next fall.
“If my campaign has a theme, it’s reform,” said Wagner, a Croton resident. “To preserve our quality of life and keep our Hudson Valley communities affordable, we need some help from Albany. Governor Cuomo has made tremendous headway, but we could do so much more with a pragmatic state Senate – not one that’s paralyzed by petty politics. That’s going to require leadership that’s ready to put families, common sense and our communities ahead of political extremism or opportunism.”
In his first run for public office, Wagner lost by about two percentage points, handily winning the Westchester portion of the district but getting trounced in Ball’s home territory of Putnam and Dutchess counties.
Wagner also unveiled the identities of the three co-chairs of his campaign steering committee. They are former Pleasantville mayor and county legislator John Nonna; Cortlandt Democratic Chairman John McBride; and Southeast Councilwoman Lynne Eckardt.
Ball’s Communications Director Joe Bachmeier said the two-term state senator will not make his plans public about any candidacy for next year until the spring. There has been some speculation that Ball would consider running for another office, including Putnam County executive.
Bachmeier lauded Ball for delivering for the district and his “bipartisan record of impressive accomplishments, fighting for seniors, veterans, working families, small businesses and the less fortunate.”
“While Wagner is free to declare his candidacy, as he unsuccessfully did before, the senator has a responsibility to continue his good work and will not make an announcement on his intention to seek re-election, or run for any office for that matter, until after work on the state budget is complete, sometime in the spring,” Bachmeier said.
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/
