By Jody Dietch
Orange Democratic Town Committee
Jody Dietch
Every fall is election season. This year voting for the local town elections has already begun, with absentee ballots and early voting underway. Every municipality sees a drop-off in voting during municipal elections.
It’s interesting because the elected officials in local municipal elections truly affect your daily lives more than other elections. Yet some people don’t pay attention to them nor take the time to vote. Your local taxes are affected by this vote. How development happens in town is decided by your vote.
Lately the ugly tone of national politics has been trying to rear its head into our local election. That is not what voters have been telling our candidates they want in Orange. The Orange Democrats pledge to protect our schools and our town from outside negative influences that align with a troubling national agenda.
If you haven’t already voted, get to know all of the candidates. Read their social media, past and present. We like to think of Orange as an inclusive welcoming town, yet so many people we spoke to at the doors and on the phones have said they don’t feel welcome because they haven’t lived here their entire lives, or because they have a non-traditional family, or because they feel if you aren’t part of the “good old boy network” you can’t get attention from Town Hall.
We don’t even know if the Republican Amity Board of Education candidates’ children attend that school, because the entire Republican slate refused to complete the survey the non-partisan Amity Allies sends out each municipal election. They are staying the course by not telling you their plans.
This is what we mean when we say “get to know” the candidates. Have they reached out to you? Have they even asked for your vote, or do they just assume they will get it? Have they told you where they stand on the issues?
The current first selectman even called out Dan Fitzmaurice at the first debate for being “new to Orange” when, in fact (facts do matter), he and his family have lived here more than a decade and, as a child, Fitzmaurice swam for the town swim team.
I would bet that the number of “townies” is shrinking every year. And that’s what makes Orange great: our diversity. Yet instead of embracing it, the current leadership mocks it, talking about where Germans, Polish, Italian people live in town.
The people of Orange don’t need to know where Subway used to be in town or other nonsense historical references offered by the current first selectman during the debate. They want to know what leadership will do to improve their life here and what the priorities are to support our schools and protect them from the ugly national agenda by the federal government whose only goal is to destroy sound policies.
The Democrats have laid out their priorities from day one. The Republicans want to “stay the course” versus looking to the future and what the possibilities can be for our town. They don’t have an economic plan, because despite all the high-profile vacancies, staying the course seems fine with the current administration.
The current administration spent tens of thousands of dollars on a plan for Fred Wolfe Park 13 years ago. It never came to fruition. What makes this time any different when they just want to stay the course?
Orange has excellent schools, but if you look at recent ratings, we could be doing better. “Stay the course” won’t help our kids.
For years, the Democrats have been saying Town Hall needs to communicate better with the residents of Orange. But Republicans want to “stay the course” when the Democrats have a plan to make communications better between Town Hall and residents.
Guiding these priorities is first selectman candidate Dan Fitzmaurice. Fitzmaurice is a contrast to our current leadership style. He is compassionate and empathetic. Fitzmaurice is asking for your vote, but if you don’t vote for him, you will still get the same top-level, respectful response to your questions and needs when he is first selectman.
The Orange Democrats’ slate of candidates offers a fresh view of our town which includes veterans as well as enthusiastic younger candidates. They have made more than 10,000 contacts in town at the doors and on the phones. They have listened to you and are ready to put your concerns at the top of their to-do lists. We ask for your vote and ask you to help us plan for the future of Orange together.
It’s time to vote. Know who you are voting for and please vote. Let your voice be heard. Every vote really does matter. Early voting has begun in the lower level of Town Hall. Why wait for Nov. 4? The time to vote is now.
Jody Dietch is the chair of the Orange Democratic Town Committee.