Dr. Kevin Hardwick, a Republican who serves as a political science professor at Canisius College and hosts his own radio show every Sunday on Buffalo's WBEN 930 AM, announced yesterday that he will run for Erie County Legislature against Legislator Michele Iannello, who represents the 10th Legislative District.
For the past four years Dr. Kevin Hardwick has hosted "Hardline" on WBEN, examining the political issues on a local, state and national level. Today he stepped away from the microphone in order to enter the race for the 10th District of the Erie County Legislature. Hardwick says that he is doing so after County Executive, Chris Collins pleaded with him to do so and that Collins has "...certainly indicated that he will help me politically, financially. To what extent, we'll find out over the course of the next few months."
Hardwick's opponent in the race is Michele Ianello who has won re-election and thinks that Hardwick's candidacy is simply a move by Collins to get her out of office, "The county executive believes he can just have me fired...I have provided oversight of county finances and I represented the people of the tenth district in the way that they want to be represented." Ianello also labels Hardwick as a "rubber stamp" for Collins agenda.
Hardwick counters by noting his opposition to the Republican party in his previous runs for the same seat (2001 and 2003), "...any attempt to paint me as this puppet of the county executive, I think we can look at my history and know that I had no problem standing up to powerful people before and if the county executive crosses a line, certainly I'll be there to try and stop him."
It is rather difficult for Hardwick to make such an argument - that he isn't a puppet of Republican County Executive Chris Collins - when Collins has made it known that he wishes to target three individuals in county government. That list, which also includes County Comptroller Mark Poloncarz, has Iannello's name on it.
If Collins makes it possible for Hardwick to win, I can't imagine Hardwick fighting back too much. He might pick his battles to make it seem like he's a John McCain-type, but since Collins will make an investment in him "politically and financially," I can't see Hardwick questioning too much, if anything, that Collins will do should Hardwick be elected. |
