It reminded me of when June stopped in Orleans County for about an hour in October, a few weeks before the local elections here.
O'Neill said the Republican advantage in party registration Upstate also has disappeared. Today, she said, the number of enrolled Democrats exceeds the number of enrolled Republicans north of New York City. State election records show that in the congressional districts north of New York City there are more than 1.8 million Democrats, just
a bit less than 1.8 million Republicans. In 2000, Republicans outnumbered Democrats Upstate by about 100,000.
St. Lawrence County reflects that change, O'Neill said. In the 1970s when, spurred by her husband's interest, she got into politics, Republicans outnumbered Democrats about 3-to-1 in the county. Now there are more than 10,000 registered independent voters and the Republican advantage is fewer than 2,000 among 60,000 registered voters.
"It's definitely a swing county," she said.
Coming from the most upstate of Upstate counties, O'Neill said the alleged Upstate/Downstate split is "a red herring," nothing more than campaign rhetoric. "I think we're one state," she said. Whether the topic is affordable housing, teenage pregnancy, homelessness, crack cocaine or access to health care, she said the same issues affect New Yorkers everywhere.
June O'Neill is an excellent (and effective) leader. One piece of advice she gave our candidates here in Orleans County was to burn holes in the soles of your shoes. She really stressed hard work on a campaign and she was inspiring.
